Responding to Mythos “Race Against Time”: Japan’s Takaichi

Tokyo, May 14 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Thursday that the government is rushing to take measures against the cybersecurity threats posed by the Claude Mythos artificial intelligence model, describing such efforts as a “race against time.” “Finding vulnerabilities (in systems) is a race against time,” Takaichi said in a meeting with Masaaki Taira, chairman of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Headquarters for National Cybersecurity Strategy. “I am giving instructions to come up with concrete measures and implement them.” Taira handed the prime minister a proposal on fundamentally strengthening measures regarding AI, which warned about the threats of cyberattacks using Mythos. He called for steps that enhance the cyber defense capabilities of all critical infrastructure operators. Mythos, developed by U.S. startup Anthropic, is highly adept at identifying system vulnerabilities, which has sparked concerns about its possible use in cyberattacks. Anthropic has not publicly released the AI model, and only a few companies and groups have access to it. Japan’s three megabanks–MUFG Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Mizuho Bank–are working to gain access. Hisashi Matsumoto, minister in charge of cybersecurity, also attended the meeting. “We hope to present a package of countermeasures as soon as possible,” Matsumoto told reporters after the meeting. The proposal calls for countermeasures to be implemented first in the financial sector, citing not only national security considerations but also its vulnerability to attacks. It also outlines a plan to establish a working group comprising members including representatives of the information technology and online financial services industries, with the aim of building a framework for the public and private sectors to cooperate in defending against cyberattacks. Japan’s Financial Services Agency on Thursday held the first meeting of a public-private working group to discuss and bolster measures against the risk posed by cutting-edge AI. It was attended by representatives from the government, the Bank of Japan, Japan Exchange Group Inc., the three megabanks and Anthropic’s Japan office. Also on Thursday, Takahiro Anno, leader of the Japanese opposition party Team Mirai, criticized the government for being slow in its handling of the cybersecurity threats posed by Mythos, saying, “It took time for the government to start moving.” Anno pointed out that the British government called on financial institutions to take measures about a week after Anthropic released Mythos on April 7, while Takaichi only issued instructions on cybersecurity measures with Mythos in mind on Tuesday. “I want to propose that the government adopt a system in which it can respond (to the latest developments),” he said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]