Cyberattack on Bandai Namco's Anime Streaming Platform
Bandai Namco's anime streaming service experienced a significant disruption when a cyberattack led to the cancellation of over 46,000 user accounts. The attack, which occurred on November 4, 2025, was carried out by a 15-year-old male high school student from Saitama Prefecture in Japan. The student utilized a ChatGPT-assisted program to generate an automated script designed to cancel user subscriptions.
According to reports, the student accessed the platform's system vulnerability by monitoring and analyzing network traffic to and from Bandai Channel's servers. He then used ChatGPT to create the script, which was executed between 5 p.m. and 8:46 p.m. on the day of the attack.
Investigation and Aftermath
The cybercrime countermeasures division of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) was notified of the incident, and an investigation was launched. The student was initially apprehended on June 13, 2026, on suspicion of violating the Unauthorized Computer Access Prohibition Act. The MPD finalized the arrest on July 4, 2026, after securing evidence of the student's involvement in the attack.
The incident has raised concerns over the platform's cybersecurity infrastructure, with many users criticizing the ease with which the student was able to compromise the system.
Bandai Namco has confirmed that up to 1.36 million items of personal user information were compromised in the breach, including email addresses, user nicknames, and payment methods. However, the company stressed that user passwords and credit card details were not exposed.
Previous Cybersecurity Incidents
This is not the first time that Bandai Namco has been the victim of a major cybersecurity attack. In July 2022, the company experienced a ransomware attack targeting several group companies in its Asian regions outside Japan. The cybercriminal group ALPHV, also known as BlackCat, claimed responsibility for the breach and threatened to leak confidential customer information related to the company's business.
