Close

Privacy Awareness Week 2025(26th May-1st June)

日本語ページはこちら

Privacy Awareness Week - Initiatives for 2025 (Table of Contents)

What is Privacy Awareness Week?

Each year, the members of Asia Pacific Privacy Authorities (APPA) set up a"Privacy Awareness Week (PAW)" to raise awareness of the protection of privacy and personal information.

As a member of APPA, the PPC Japan has been engaging in PAW activities, and intensifies its effort to raise awareness about the importance of personal information.

This year's themer "Privacy – it’s everyone’s business"

Message from the Chairperson of the PPC Japan

portrait of Dr.tezuka

The Personal Information Protection Commission of Japan (PPC Japan) designates the period from May 26 to June 1, 2025 as this year’s Privacy Awareness Week and intensifies its efforts to disseminate information, etc. about the importance of personal information. As a member of the Asia Pacific Privacy Authorities (APPA), the PPC Japan has been engaging in PR and awareness-raising activities continuously since 2018.

In the first half of FY 2024 (April 1 to September 30, 2024), the number of personal data leaks and other cases directly reported to the PPC Japan was 7,735, which is a significant increase from the same period in 2023 (4,938).

The main causes included the incorrect delivery and loss of documents containing sensitive personal information by hospitals and pharmacies, as well as phishing scams and the incorrect delivery of credit cards.

During “Privacy Awareness Week,” posters and digital signage advertisements will be displayed nationwide. We hope that this opportunity will encourage everyone to review their handling of personal information and take proactive steps to prevent careless mistakes that can happen to anyone, ensuring that personal information is handled appropriately and securely.

To Business Operators

We kindly request that all business operators handle personal information appropriately following the implementation of adequate safety control measures.

In particular, there have been many incidents of data leaks caused by human error. To reduce human error-related leaks, it is essential not only to provide education on personal information protection through training but also to establish an organizational framework that prevents leaks from occurring. Therefore, we strongly urge all business operators to once again confirm the status of personal information security measures within their organizations.

Furthermore, with the emergence of generative AI and the increasing sophistication of information technology, the handling of personal information is becoming significantly more complex. It is therefore important to ensure transparency toward individuals and provide necessary explanations. As part of these efforts, we ask that you confirm whether you are appropriately addressing matters such as specifying the intended use of personal information to the greatest extent possible, notifying and disclosing such information, and responding to requests for disclosure from individuals, and that you exercise due caution in the appropriate use of personal information.

Training materials on personal information protection are available on the PPC Japan's official website. Please take advantage of these materials as a reference for the proper handling of personal information.

To the General Public

While internet services and social media are convenient and easily accessible with smartphones and computers, crimes such as phishing scams aimed at collecting personal information are on the rise.

If personal information is leaked, there is a significant risk that it may be spread without your knowledge, and it is extremely difficult to completely delete such information once it has been leaked.

We therefore urge each and every one of you to exercise caution when using internet services.

To help each of you learn about the handling of personal information and the personal information protection system, our website offers educational videos, cartoons, pamphlets, and various other tools regarding social networking services, online games, and other typical everyday situations in which you should be careful with personal information.

It has been reported that children who use social networking service or online games without realizing the dangers may put names of themselves, friends, or schools, or post photos that may reveal their addresses, and some children may even get into danger through applications that share their location information.

Please take this opportunity to discuss rules with your family, for example, making sure that children first ask another family member when they use social networking services.

Used properly, personal information should make our lives more convenient and fulfilling. Please do continue to handle personal information in an appropriate manner.

If you have any question or concern about personal information, please see the FAQopen with another window section on our website, contact the “PPC Question Chat”, or ask our “Inquiry Line for Act on Protection of Personal Information”open with another window.

I sincerely hope that the Privacy Awareness Week will serve as an occasion for you to review how you handle personal information.

Dr. Satoru TEZUKA, Chairperson, PPC Japan

個人情報のうっかりをしっかり防ごう

For Individuals

As part of our efforts to help every one of you to increase your awareness and understanding of the protection and use of personal information, we have created videos and other content. These videos are also available on our official YouTube channel, so we encourage you to take this opportunity to view them.

PPC Japan on YouTube open with another window

※From the perspective of clarify, the terms used may differ from the definitions under the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI).

Videos available on YouTube (click link to view on YouTube)

For other videos, please visit our official YouTube channel .

For Business Operators

Business operators who handle personal information are required to take various measures to ensure that such information is handled appropriately. Based on the security measures outlined in the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI), please take this opportunity to review your workplace rules for handling personal information.

For School Officials and Parents (Materials for Children)

We offer materials for children, school staff, and parents to raise awareness about the importance of personal information. We also offer on-site classes by our staff at elementary schools nationwide on the "appropriate handling of personal information." Online classes and on-site classes for junior high and high school students are also available. For more details, please visit the Kids’ Pages

Poster and Movies on the Privacy Awareness Week

Here is a poster on the Privacy Awareness Week. Please feel free to download it.

Here are videos on the Privacy Awareness Week (for station, airport, and outdoor ads)

Previous Privacy Awareness Weeks