Tokyo, Oct. 11 (Jiji Press)–Massive driver’s license data breaches that recently hit the Times Car vehicle-sharing service in Japan due to a cyberattack have made many people in the country scramble to seek reissuance of their licenses. The move apparently reflects concerns about the possibility of their driver’s license data being abused. Still, police say that driver’s license renewal would have only a limited effect in preventing crime damage. The National Police Agency is urging financial institutions and other businesses to thoroughly conduct identity verifications while calling on individuals to seek police consultations immediately when fraud or abuse of their personal data is suspected. Image data on some 1.6 million people, including of driver’s licenses with facial photos, are believed to have leaked from the Times Car service, run by an affiliate of Park24 Co. Since the data breaches were announced, police stations and driver’s license centers around the country have received massive inquiries about renewing license data. In principle, reissuance is limited to cases in which driver’s licenses become lost or are damaged, and there are changes in data due to relocation. Under the rules for implementing the road traffic law, however, reissuance is possible if local public safety commissions recognize sufficient circumstances. Following the data breaches at Times Car, almost all offices concerned are allowing reissuance. In reissuance, changes can be made only for the facial photo and the last digit of the 12-digit number indicating the number of times the license has been reissued. The crime prevention effect from reissuance would be limited, partly because data, such as the dates of birth and addresses, have fallen into the hands of perpetrators. The NPA has urged businesses to thoroughly check identity to prevent offenders from fraudulently opening financial accounts or signing credit card contracts using stolen personal data. From April 2027, financial institutions and others will be mandated to check identity by reading integrated circuit chips embedded in the My Number identification card or the driver’s license under the revised law for preventing the transfer of crime proceeds, making account openings and other activities based only on image data impossible. Some companies have already introduced the verification method. The NPA plans to step up efforts to raise awareness and urge more firms to use the method. Besides the Times Car case, many other Japanese companies have suffered unauthorized access and subsequent personal data breaches, raising concerns about increases in fraud phone calls and fake emails pretending to be the firms from which data leaked. “We will work to create a safe and secure cyberspace by cracking down on and deterring crimes,” NPA chief Yoshinobu Kusunoki told a press conference Thursday, calling on businesses and others to thoroughly put basic cybersecurity measures in place. He also asked people to take measures such as using crime prevention apps with a function to block fraud phone calls, updating passwords and not opening suspicious emails. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
