Japan to set up task force on cyberattack risks from Anthropic’s Mythos AI

Japan will set up a task force to discuss cybersecurity risks in the financial sector posed by Anthropic’s Mythos artificial intelligence model, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on April 24, as concerns over security threats from the recently released model spread across the world.

Swift preparations are necessary as the impact of cyberattacks on financial infrastructure could be significant, affecting financial markets and undermining public trust in the financial system, Ms Katayama told reporters after an inaugural meeting on the issue.

Mythos, rolled out earlier in April, is highly capable of finding and exploiting hidden software flaws. Anthropic said its preview “has already found thousands of high-severity vulnerabilities”.

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda and top executives of major Japanese banks were among those attending the meeting. Ms Katayama also serves as minister for financial services.

“We face a crisis unfolding right in front of us,” Ms Katayama said of AI’s security threats.

The task force will be formed by members from the private and public sectors.

Financial regulators around the world, including in the United States and Europe, have already called emergency meetings to discuss measures to address risks posed by Mythos.

Due to safety and security concerns, the US AI company has not released Mythos to the public, limiting access to around 50 companies and organisations. KYODO NEWS