Police in Japan arrest Chinese nationals in cybercrime crackdown
Police uncover mainland-run operation that provided illegal internet services, allowing criminals to hack into Japanese banks and retailers
PUBLISHED : Thursday, 20 November, 2014, 10:06pm
UPDATED : Friday, 21 November, 2014, 4:14am
Julian Ryall in Tokyo
Japanese authorities believe the system permitted criminals in China to bypass Japanese service providers and access protected online services. Photo: AP
Japanese police have carried out a series of coordinated raids across the country, arresting at least two Chinese nationals on suspicion of illegally providing internet proxy services to cybercriminals based in China.
Police from 19 prefectural police headquarters searched the premises used by eight internet service companies. Other people taken into custody are expected to be charged in the coming days.
Japanese authorities believe the system permitted criminals in China to bypass Japanese service providers and, utilising the IDs and security passwords of legitimate account holders, access the protected online services of banks, game companies and retailers.
By using the proxy servers, users were able to avoid revealing their Chinese internet protocol addresses and carry out cyberattacks against Japanese institutions and corporations, as well as conduct illegal money transfers via online transactions.
The National Police Agency in Tokyo declined to comment because the investigation was ongoing, although the Yomiuri newspaper quoted a senior Tokyo officer as saying that two companies in the city that provide proxy services had obtained and stored the ID details and passwords of users signed up to major domestic internet service providers.
An examination of the firm's online records suggest that the accounts had been used to illegally transfer money through numerous bank accounts, the Yomiuri report said.
Authorities estimate that hundreds of millions of yen in damages had been inflicted on companies and individuals through the scheme.
In another case, access had been obtained to the website of a mobile phone rental company which was forced to admit last year that its system had been hacked and that financial details, including credit card numbers, of more than 100,000 of its customers had been leaked.
Authorities in Japan have been cracking down on cybercrimes involving hackers based overseas, although officials admit that the technical skills of the criminals make it difficult to trace the perpetrators and seal a conviction.
In June, Tokyo police arrested 13 Chinese nationals on suspicion of illegally transferring funds between internet bank accounts and using stolen cash cards to make withdrawals of up to ¥600 million (HK$45.56 million).
One company lost ¥36 million from its corporate account through fraudulent transactions, Jiji Press reported.
The previous month, the National Police Agency reported that the amount of money misappropriated in cyberspace had risen to ¥1.4 billion a year.
Authorities are also concerned about criminals stealing and selling Japanese companies' secret research.
In 2011, websites operated by Japanese government institutions and other official agencies were the target of malicious cyberattacks.
The government refrained from pointing the finger at any nation as the source of the attacks, but the widely held assumption is that they originated in China and were in part motivated by the deterioration in relations between Tokyo and Beijing.
