Japan: Japanese government halts official use of messaging app LINE after allegedly illegal data transfer

On 29 March 2021, the Chief Cabinet Secretary of the Japanese Government announced in a press conference that the use of the messaging app LINE will be halted temporarily. This measure specifically affects the official use of the messaging app concerning sensitive information. The Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication (MIC) had opened an investigation into LINE for an allegedly illegal data transfer on 17 March 2018. MIC alleges LINE has made personal user information stored on a server in Japan accessible to an affiliated company in China.