(Yomiuri: February 22, 2016 – p. 2)

 The government will launch a team tasked with dealing with cyberattacks under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister’s Office with an eye on the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT) will oversee counter-cybersecurity teams individually set up by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, concerned ministries and agencies as well as private firms and act as a control tower to coordinate information-sharing and collaborative responses.

 The National Center of Incident readiness and Strategy for Cybersecurity (NISC) will play a pivotal role in laying out basic policies this spring and come up with concrete measures. It will test the CSIRT during the Rugby World Cup, which Japan will host in 2019, in the run-up to the Tokyo Games the following year.

 The government set up CSIRTs in all ministries and agencies in 2013 and has been encouraging corporations to set up similar teams. But under the current mechanism, each corporation and public entity needs to respond to cyberattacks on its own, giving rise to concerns that information-sharing on viruses and response measures may be delayed in the event of a simultaneous attack.

 During the Tokyo Games, the CSIRT will oversee all CSIRTs involved with the Games and facilitate information-sharing and collaboration to deal with cyberattacks. It will also take the initiative in organizing drills and training.

 The government will leave intact the collaborative mechanism between the public and private sectors to deal with cyberattacks after the Olympic Games to step up cybersecurity defenses across the country. (Abridged)