Systematic Government Access to Private-Sector Data in Japan

The Japanese legal system has been based on the German legal system since the mid-nineteenth century, but the American legal system was grafted onto it following Japan’s defeat in World War II in 1945. The postwar Constitution contained an article regarding the secrecy of communications and protected privacy in terms of respect of individuals. Now, as the Personal Information Protection Law in the Executive Branch, which was enacted in 1988, and the Personal Information Protection Law, which was enacted in 2003, strictly regulate privacy, there have been fewer problematic cases regarding governmental access to private-sector data. Data gathering for law enforcement or intelligence activities has also been weaker following World War II. Private-sector corporations/organizations might share data with government agencies, but based on voluntary arrangements, not by any mandatory system. More focus is being cast not on governmental access to private-sector data, but on citizen’s access to data.