Defence China hacked Japan’s sensitive defence networks in 2020

The hackers had deep, persistent access. They appeared to be after anything they could get their hands on — plans, capabilities, assessments of military shortcomings, according to three former senior U.S. officials, who were among a dozen current and former U.S. Japanese officials interviewed, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter's sensitivity. "It was bad — shockingly bad," recalled one former U.S. military official, who was briefed on the event, which has not been previously reported. Tokyo has taken steps to strengthen its networks. But they are still deemed not sufficiently secure from Beijing's prying eyes, which, officials say, could impede greater intelligence-sharing between the Pentagon and Japan's Defense Ministry. The 2020 penetration was so disturbing that Gen. Paul Nakasone, the head of the NSA and U.S. Cyber Command, and Matthew Pottinger, who was White House deputy national security adviser at the time, raced to Tokyo. They briefed the defence minister, who was so concerned that he arranged for them to alert the prime minister himself.

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"Japan and the United States have been closely communicating with each other at various levels," Hamada told a news conference. "I refrain from discussing details given the nature of the issue, but no leaks of confidential information held by the Defense Ministry have been confirmed." Hamada said Japan's capabilities to deal with cyberattacks would be revealed if he explained the attacks that the nation has suffered and the responses it has taken.

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