On the 27th, the Japanese government stated that the announcement by OpenAI, regarding a Chinese judicial official attempting to use the AI chatbot ChatGPT to target a smear campaign against Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, posed a “security threat.”
Minoru Kihara, the Chief Cabinet Secretary and spokesperson for the Japanese government, mentioned in a press conference that they recognize the occurrence of foreign manipulation in various countries and consider such situations a security threat to Japan.
He added that it is urgent to formulate measures as these activities threaten the foundation of democracy, including election composition and free press.
Furthermore, Kihara emphasized strengthening information collection and analysis capabilities, as well as promoting accurate information dissemination.
Regarding the proposal from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to introduce a “Foreign Agent Registration Act” to require registration for those lobbying on behalf of foreign governments, Kihara stressed the need for a system to prevent undue interference in Japan’s decision-making processes.
Following the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in the House of Representatives elections (general election), the Japanese government and the ruling party are accelerating efforts to establish a National Intelligence Agency and enact a spy prevention law.
The government has decided on a policy to grant the National Intelligence Agency, which will direct information gathering activities, the “comprehensive coordination authority” to integrate and collect information from various ministries, according to Asahi Shimbun.
Previously, OpenAI revealed in its “AI Misuse Prevention Report” that a Chinese law enforcement official attempted in mid-October last year to conduct a systematic smear campaign against Prime Minister Takaichi using ChatGPT. However, ChatGPT refused to comply.
In response, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning, during a routine briefing, refuted the claims as “groundless accusations” and stated that China firmly opposes such unfounded slanders.