Penetration Testing Services in Japan
Japan runs the most layered cybersecurity regulator stack in APAC. NISC sets cabinet-level policy and the Common Standards for Information Security Measures. JPCERT/CC coordinates national incident response and the JVN vulnerability-disclosure pipeline. The FSA supervises banks, securities firms, payment institutions and crypto-asset exchanges under guidelines refreshed in 2024. The PPC enforces APPI — including the 2022 amendments that made breach notification mandatory and gave the law extraterritorial reach. JIPDEC operates the ISMS conformity assessment scheme, with JIS Q 27001:2023 as the Japanese national adoption of ISO/IEC 27001:2022. The FISC Security Reference is the de-facto control framework for finance. AxVeil delivers vulnerability assessment, penetration testing and red team services across Japan for SaaS, fintech, crypto-asset exchanges, manufacturing and foreign-headquartered firms with Japan operations — operator-led, named-operator engagements with fixed-fee proposals in USD.
Engagements are served from our Bengaluru-headquartered, remote-first team across Japan's primary technology corridors — Marunouchi, Shibuya and Roppongi in Tokyo, plus Osaka, Yokohama, Nagoya and the Fukuoka SaaS cluster. Japan Standard Time is three-and-a-half hours ahead of India Standard Time, which gives us a clean JST morning overlap (typically 09:00 to 14:00 JST) for daily Slack / Teams triage, draft-report walkthroughs and readout calls. Whether you are a B2B SaaS pursuing JIS Q 27001 / ISMS certification, a crypto-asset exchange under FSA scrutiny, an APPI-exposed marketplace, or a foreign-HQ manufacturer consolidating SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO 27001:2022 evidence with an APPI overlay, our methodology compresses month-long manual audits into 10–14 day engagements without sacrificing depth. Every report is mapped to the standards your accredited certification body, regulator and enterprise customers actually read — JIS Q 27001:2023, APPI, FSA cyber guidelines, FISC Security Reference, NIST CSF, OWASP ASVS L2, OWASP API Top 10 and PCI DSS v4.0.
The Japan threat surface we scope against
FSA, PPC and the FISC reference push distinct threat lenses. We threat-model these clusters first, then map findings to your accredited body, regulator and customers.
Crypto-exchange wallet & withdrawal abuse
Japan's FSA-licensed exchanges remain a high-value target. We emulate hot/cold-wallet segregation bypass, withdrawal-approval workflow manipulation and admin-plane abuse the FSA expects tested.
APPI cross-border data exposure
The 2022 amendments give APPI extraterritorial reach and tighten transfer rules. We map where Japanese personal data flows offshore and where the PPC notification clock would actually start.
Manufacturing IT/OT segmentation
Automotive, electronics and robotics estates blur IT and OT boundaries. We review segmentation, jump-host exposure and the IEC 62443 / NIST CSF gaps that let an IT compromise reach the plant floor.
SaaS isolation for global procurement
Japanese SaaS chasing global enterprise needs SOC 2 + ISMS to hold. We hunt multi-tenant IDOR, broken object-level auth and OAuth trust-boundary flaws that undermine both narratives.
AxVeil is not a JIPDEC-accredited ISMS certification body and we do not issue JIS Q 27001 / ISMS certificates. ISMS-AC / JIPDEC operates the conformity assessment scheme in Japan; certification must be issued by an accredited body. AxVeil delivers penetration testing, red team and compliance engagements to JIS Q 27001:2023 clauses for clients pursuing or maintaining ISMS certification through an accredited body. Our output — test reports, control mappings, remediation guidance — is an evidence pack the client hands directly to its certification body. We do not claim a Japanese local office, JPCERT/CC vendor status or membership of any FSA / FISC pre-approved tester panel. Where a Japanese FSA-licensed FI requires a tester from an internal panel, AxVeil partners with that panelled provider. The contracting path is stated in the proposal up front.
Industries we serve in Japan
Japan's technology economy concentrates around four buyer profiles. The B2B SaaS cohort — names like SmartHR, freee, Sansan, Money Forward, BASE and the Fukuoka SaaS cluster — typically needs JIS Q 27001 / ISMS certification plus a SOC 2 Type 2 overlay for global enterprise procurement. The fintech and crypto-asset exchange segment — Japanese-licensed exchanges under the Payment Services Act, electronic-payment service providers and the bank-adjacent payment-rails layer — answers to the FSA cyber guidelines and the FISC Security Reference. The marketplace and platform layer — Rakuten-style commerce, Mercari-style C2C, Line-adjacent platforms — manages APPI obligations across Japanese and international data flows. Finally, Japan's manufacturing base — automotive, electronics, robotics, industrial automation — increasingly buys IT/OT segmentation reviews and IEC 62443 / NIST CSF mapped engagements.
Our Japan work concentrates in: B2B SaaS pursuing JIS Q 27001:2023 ISMS certification; FSA-supervised fintech and crypto-asset exchanges where the FISC Security Reference applies; APPI-exposed marketplaces and platforms with the 2022 amendments in scope; and foreign-HQ companies with Japan operations where the parent-jurisdiction auditor (US, EU, UK) drives the primary scope and APPI is the local overlay. Government and critical-infrastructure work under NISC remit routes through partner arrangements.
SaaS & API VAPT
Web, API, mobile and cloud penetration testing for Japan-headquartered SaaS scaling into global enterprise procurement and ISMS / JIS Q 27001 certification cycles.
Learn more →Fintech Red Team
Adversary emulation against banking, payment, lending and crypto-asset exchange stacks aligned to FSA cyber guidelines and the FISC Security Reference (Anzen Taisaku Kijun).
Learn more →Japan regulators and frameworks we map every report to
NISC — National center of Incident readiness and Strategy for Cybersecurity
Cabinet-level cybersecurity coordinator. Publishes the Cybersecurity Strategy and the Common Standards for Information Security Measures for Government Agencies. Sets the policy floor that flows down to FSA, METI and sector regulators.
JPCERT/CC — Japan Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center
National CSIRT. Coordinates vulnerability disclosure via JVN (Japan Vulnerability Notes), publishes early-warning advisories and runs the coordination interface with global CERTs. AxVeil reports use JVN / CVE references where applicable.
FSA — Financial Services Agency
Regulator for banks, securities firms, insurers, payment institutions and crypto-asset exchanges. The FSA Policy Approaches to Strengthen Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector (updated 2024) sets expectations for threat-led testing, third-party risk and incident reporting timelines.
PPC — Personal Information Protection Commission
Enforces the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI). The 2022 amendment introduced mandatory breach notification to the PPC and affected data subjects, extraterritorial reach for foreign processors handling Japanese personal data, and stricter cross-border transfer rules.
JIPDEC — JIS Q 27001 / ISMS conformity assessment
JIPDEC operates the ISMS conformity assessment scheme under ISMS-AC. JIS Q 27001:2023 is the Japanese national adoption of ISO/IEC 27001:2022. AxVeil is not a JIPDEC-accredited certification body — we deliver to JIS Q 27001 clauses for clients pursuing or maintaining certification through an accredited body.
FISC — Center for Financial Industry Information Systems
Publishes the FISC Security Reference (Anzen Taisaku Kijun), the de-facto control framework for Japanese banks, payment processors and fintech infrastructure. AxVeil engagements map findings to FISC controls where the buyer or its downstream bank counterparties require it.
Compliance frameworks we deliver against in Japan
JIS Q 27001:2023 (ISMS, ISMS-AC / JIPDEC)
Japanese national adoption of ISO/IEC 27001:2022. Delivered clause-by-clause as an evidence pack for clients pursuing certification through an accredited body. AxVeil is not the certifier.
APPI — Act on the Protection of Personal Information
2022 amendments in scope: mandatory PPC breach notification, extraterritorial reach for foreign processors handling Japanese personal data, cross-border transfer rules, data-subject rights, retention and DPO-equivalent obligations.
FSA Cyber Guidelines (2024 update)
Policy Approaches to Strengthen Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector. Threat-led testing, third-party risk, incident-reporting timelines and management-engagement expectations for FSA-supervised entities.
FISC Security Reference (Anzen Taisaku Kijun)
De-facto control framework for Japanese banks, payment processors and fintech infrastructure. AxVeil maps findings to FISC controls where the buyer or its downstream bank counterparties require it.
NIST Cybersecurity Framework
Identify / Protect / Detect / Respond / Recover mapping for Japan subsidiaries of US-headquartered firms and for Japanese exporters whose downstream customers require CSF alignment. CSF 2.0 Govern function included.
OWASP ASVS L2 + API Top 10
Default application-layer floor for Japan SaaS engineering teams. AxVeil engagements run ASVS L2 control-by-control with reproducible PoCs and developer-friendly remediation guidance.
Sample Japan engagement patterns
Japan SaaS pursuing JIS Q 27001 / ISMS
A Tokyo or Fukuoka B2B SaaS preparing for JIS Q 27001:2023 (ISMS) certification via a JIPDEC-accredited body. AxVeil delivers a full-stack VAPT — web, API, mobile, cloud IAM — mapped clause-by-clause to JIS Q 27001 Annex A controls and ISO/IEC 27002:2022. Output is an evidence pack the client hands directly to its accredited certification body, plus developer-facing remediation guidance. Typical: 10–14 business days, USD 18,000–30,000.
Crypto-asset exchange / payment institution under FSA scrutiny
A Japan-licensed crypto-asset exchange, electronic-payment service provider or funds-transfer business under the Payment Services Act answering to the FSA. AxVeil scopes against the FSA Policy Approaches to Strengthen Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector and the FISC Security Reference, with adversary emulation against hot/cold wallet segregation, withdrawal-approval workflows and admin-plane abuse. Where the FI requires a tester from an internal panel, AxVeil partners with that panelled provider. Typical: 3–6 weeks.
Foreign-HQ SaaS / manufacturer with Japan ops + APPI exposure
A US, EU or APAC-headquartered company with a Japanese subsidiary, Japan-resident users or a manufacturing footprint subject to APPI. AxVeil delivers a VAPT scoped to the parent-jurisdiction auditor (SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001:2022, GDPR) and overlays an APPI gap pack covering the 2022 amendments: breach-notification readiness, cross-border-transfer documentation and PPC reporting flows. Typical: 7–10 business days for a focused engagement; longer where OT / ICS scope is included.
Office and coverage statement
AxVeil is headquartered in Bengaluru, India and operates remote-first across APAC. We do not maintain a Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, Nagoya or Fukuoka office, and we do not claim a Japanese local presence. Japan engagements are served as commercial cross-border delivery from our Bengaluru base.
Japan Standard Time (JST, UTC+9) is three-and-a-half hours ahead of India Standard Time. Our guaranteed JST overlap is the morning window — typically 09:00 to 14:00 JST, corresponding to 05:30 to 10:30 IST on our side — during which we hold daily standups, Slack / Teams triage, draft-report walkthroughs and readout calls. Onsite kick-offs and in-person readouts in Tokyo, Osaka or Fukuoka are arranged on a per-engagement basis where the scope justifies the travel. The remote-first model and the JST morning overlap window are stated explicitly in every proposal.
Contracting and delivery language is English by default. Japanese-language readout and report-translation support is arranged on a per-engagement basis through a translation partner. Pricing is USD with JPY invoicing on request. We sign Japan-law MSAs and DPAs where the buyer requires it, with arbitration seated under JCAA rules where appropriate.
Engagement timeline (typical 14-day Professional VAPT)
30-minute scoping call in JST morning (or overlapping IST). NDA + MSA exchanged. Scope, RoE, asset list and regulator-mapping (JIS Q 27001, APPI, FSA, FISC, NIST CSF) locked.
Recon + threat-modelling against your stack and the regulators you actually answer to — PPC under APPI, FSA cyber guidelines for finance, JIPDEC / ISMS-AC for ISMS clients.
Active testing — web, API, mobile, cloud IAM, business logic, where applicable IT/OT segmentation. Daily Slack / Teams digest in JST morning with critical findings as they surface.
Draft report: JIS Q 27001 / ISMS clause cross-references, APPI gap notes, FSA cyber-guideline alignment where applicable, FISC mapping for fintech, NIST CSF evidence and developer-friendly remediation guidance.
Readout call with engineering + CISO in JST morning. Free retest of remediated criticals within 30 days. Final signed PDF for accredited certification bodies, auditors and board.
Related locations
Related industries
Japan FAQ
›Is AxVeil a JIPDEC-accredited ISMS certification body?
No. AxVeil is not a JIPDEC-accredited certification body and we do not issue JIS Q 27001 / ISMS certificates. We deliver penetration testing, red team and compliance engagements to JIS Q 27001:2023 (the Japanese national adoption of ISO/IEC 27001:2022) clauses for clients who are pursuing or maintaining ISMS certification through an ISMS-AC / JIPDEC-accredited body. Our output is an evidence pack — test reports, control mappings, remediation guidance — that the client hands directly to its accredited certification body. The contracting path is stated in the proposal up front. Reference: https://isms.jp/.
›Do you cover FSA cyber guidelines and the FISC Security Reference for Japanese fintech?
Yes — for non-FSA-licensed fintechs and for FSA-licensed firms where the engagement is internal readiness, scope-design or a follow-on retest. AxVeil maps findings to the FSA Policy Approaches to Strengthen Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector (updated 2024) and to the FISC Security Reference (Anzen Taisaku Kijun) where the buyer or its downstream bank counterparties require it. Where the licensed FI requires a tester from a pre-approved internal panel, AxVeil partners with the FI's nominated firm. References: https://www.fsa.go.jp/ and https://www.fisc.or.jp/.
›How do you handle APPI compliance and PPC breach-notification readiness?
Every Japan engagement includes an APPI gap review covering the 2022 amendments: mandatory breach notification to the Personal Information Protection Commission (PPC) and affected data subjects, extraterritorial reach for foreign processors handling Japanese personal data, cross-border transfer rules and Data Protection Officer / personal-information-handling-business obligations. We document the notification clock, the categories of incidents that trigger reporting and the evidence trail required to demonstrate timely escalation. Reference: https://www.ppc.go.jp/.
›Where is AxVeil based and do you have a Tokyo office?
AxVeil does not maintain a Tokyo, Osaka or Fukuoka office and we do not claim a Japanese local presence. Engagements are served from our Bengaluru-headquartered, remote-first team across Japan. Japan Standard Time (JST, UTC+9) is three-and-a-half hours ahead of India Standard Time, so JST morning hours — typically 09:00 to 14:00 JST — overlap cleanly with our IST 05:30 to 10:30 window for daily standups, Slack triage and readout calls. Onsite kick-offs in Tokyo, Osaka or Fukuoka are arranged on a per-engagement basis where the scope justifies it. The remote-first model is stated in proposals.
›Can you sign Japan-jurisdiction MSAs and DPAs, and do you deliver in Japanese?
We sign MSAs and DPAs governed by Japanese law where the buyer requires it, with arbitration seated under JCAA rules where appropriate. Contracting and delivery language is English by default; Japanese-language readout and report-translation support is arranged on a per-engagement basis. We invoice in USD; JPY invoicing is supported on request. AxVeil signs DPAs that reflect both APPI and the buyer's parent-jurisdiction obligations (US SOC 2, EU GDPR, UK GDPR) so a single engagement satisfies multiple downstream auditors. Reference: https://www.ppc.go.jp/.
Need penetration testing in Japan? Talk to a tester.
Free 30-minute scoping call in JST morning hours. We map your attack surface, name the regulators and frameworks you must satisfy — JIS Q 27001, APPI, FSA, FISC, NIST CSF — and quote in USD with JPY invoicing on request.