Japan Govt Urges Transport Firms to Guard against AI Misuse

Tokyo, May 28 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s transport ministry called on railway firms and other infrastructure operators Thursday to take measures against the misuse of high-performance artificial intelligence models, including Claude Mythos of U.S. startup Anthropic. The instructions were made at a meeting with operators from six infrastructure sectors, also including ports, airports, logistics and water supply. The ministry said that it will set up support desks for those operators regarding cybersecurity. Mythos is said to have advanced capabilities in detecting system vulnerabilities. The Japanese government has already made similar requests to telecommunications operators, broadcasters, financial institutions and local governments. “With AI rapidly becoming sophisticated and posing serious threats, enhancing countermeasures through public-private cooperation is increasingly important,” transport minister Yasushi Kaneko said at the meeting. The ministry urged executives of infrastructure operators to play active roles in taking measures against cyberattacks and secure sufficient funding and personnel. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]