Press Conference by the Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

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REPORTER: I have a question related to the repeated incidents of money being stolen from bank accounts linked to NTT Docomo’s cashless transaction service. Security concerns are now also emerging in relation to the smartphone transaction service Bank Pay, in which leading banks and other institutions are participating. As the Government has been promoting the use of cashless transactions, please explain once again how it will respond to such incidents moving forward?
 
DEPUTY CHIEF CABINET SECRETARY NISHIMURA: With respect to the incidents, the Financial Services Agency (FSA) has instructed NTT Docomo and the banks concerned to implement measures that include compensation to the victims for the full amount stolen and the suspension of the user accounts to minimize the damages, and those aimed at preventing similar incidents, such as strengthening identity verification. Furthermore, the FSA has called on banks, through the Japanese Bankers Association, to review and reinforce security measures, and to take appropriate steps to safeguard clients. For your reference, we are also aware that yesterday the operator of Bank Pay, a bank-led smartphone transaction service, has already implemented a series of measures to strengthen its security level, such as the suspension of accepting new account applications. The FSA has sent alerts to other transaction service providers to prevent similar incidents from occurring, and I have heard that it will thoroughly provide necessary guidance and supervise them.
 
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