[Continued] PR TIMES, 2021 Undisclosed Release Leak - Wound to the Foundations of the Distribution Business No Mention of Liability Issues

The damage caused by the cyberattack announced on the night of May 7, 2025 by PR TIMES, the largest press release distributor, not only leaked about 900,000 registered user information, but also leaked 1,982 pre-announcement and undisclosed release information, which can be said to shake the foundation of the company's business model. The company also allowed unauthorized access to undisclosed releases by third parties in 2021.

PR TIMES (same service name) is the company with the top share of the press release distribution service in Japan. In the company's sales materials, it is explained that "61.5% of listed companies in Japan use it," and many companies use it as a means of distributing press releases that summarize important information related to management and business.

The company's president, Takumi Yamaguchi, himself on the official website Message from the President "As of the end of February 2024, the number of companies using the service reached 94,258 (up 18.2% from the same period last year), and 57.8% of listed companies in Japan are using it," he said.

If PR TIMES's claims are true, it is conceivable that the leakage of user's undisclosed release information may have led to the leakage of information that could have a direct impact on the stock price of a listed company.

Unauthorized access to unreleased releases in 2021

FURTHER PROBLEMATIC IS THAT THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME PR TIMES HAS LEAKED AN UNDISCLOSED RELEASE. In May ~ July 2021, 230 pre-announcement press releases involving 14 accounts of 13 companies (further corrected in September 2021) were illegally accessed by a third party.

In this series of reports, there is no reference to the 2021 leak by a major media outlet. A reporter for a national newspaper said that even though PR TIMES is a publicly traded company and handles many releases from other listed companies, "the company itself and the industry are not well known among the general public, so it is a low priority as a news story."

In fact, even in the case of a scandal of the same magnitude, in the case of a well-known company, the leverage of name recognition may come into play, leading to the pursuit of management responsibility, a decline in stock prices, and even problems related to the survival of the company.

On the other hand, in the case of companies in low-profile industries, even if they are leaders in the industry, they do not receive much coverage in the mainstream media, and the problem subsides before it has fully surfaced.

Against this backdrop, especially in listed companies, corporate leaders are required to govern their management structures and fulfill their accountability with transparency, regardless of whether or not there is a press release.

At that time, PR TIMES President Takumi Yamaguchi and Director and General Manager of the Corporate Administration Division Eitaku Mishima jointly promised to prevent a recurrence through the following press release.

Apology and Report on Unauthorized Access to Pre-Announcement Information (July 9, 2021)

<Commitment to preventing recurrence>

"As a platform operator that entrusts important information before the announcement, we take it seriously and sincerely apologize for the accident that occurred before the announcement. We look forward to your continued patronage of PR TIMES."

Press releases at the time, no trace on the PR TIMES platform

The "Apology and Report on Unauthorized Access to Pre-Announcement Information" published on July 9, 2021 is currently not available directly on the PR TIMES platform.

The same content was published on September 22 of the same year. Report on the results of the survey It can be confirmed as a link in the sentence of In PR TIMES's own account does not include the information released on July 9, and it is not possible to confirm the timeline of the process from the discovery of the incident to the response.

An investigation by the editorial department of Yoi Tabi News Correspondence confirmed that the release dated July 9 was distributed at the Tokyo Stock Exchange Press Club.

Normally, PR TIMES has a history of actively publishing its own announcements within the platform, and in the case of 2021, there was a fluctuation in its consistency.

Around July 9, 2021, PR TIMES made a positive announcement that could have a positive impact on the company's stock price. It also raises doubts about the possibility that the company, a company specializing in public relations, may have made the decision to remove such negative information from the PR TIMES platform.

However, on the other hand, PR companies are in a position to emphasize transparency in disseminating information, and this is due to the " of the Japan Public Relations Association, of which PR TIMES is a member. Code of Ethics It is clearly stated as follows.

"In our own public relations activities, we will conduct various activities in a fair and sincere manner, disclose facts accurately, appropriately, and appropriately to domestic and overseas stakeholders, and enhance transparency."

Based on this philosophy, the fact that the PR TIMES does not publish a press release announcing unauthorized access raises questions in terms of fairness.

Whether PR TIMES, which supports the public relations activities of many companies, is a company based on expertise in public relations and PR or an IT vendor that provides information distribution functions, a series of responses will provide clues to understand the true picture for stakeholders such as the company's users and shareholders.

Information leak again

Then, in 2025, the leakage of information on a much larger scale than in 2021 revealed that the measures to prevent recurrence formulated at that time were not effective.

In this case, PR TIMES announced the situation on May 7, after the holidays, which is 12 days later, and at 7 p.m., which is an unusual time for a corporate scandal case, even though the problem occurred on April 24~25, before Golden Week.

Shortly after 10:30 p.m. on the same day, an e-mail was sent to registered users requesting an explanation of the situation and a password change for the first time. In addition, the media registrants were contacted after 7:40 p.m. on Thursday, August 8, revealing the delay and opacity in responding to the target of the information leak.

Due to the nature of the company's daily management of undisclosed information, information leakage is an unacceptable problem, and PR TIMES allowed access to non-public information by a third party again following the 2021 incident, and was slow to disclose information and respond to crises after that.

For the company, if the information leakage problem recurs in the future, the very value of its existence as a company involved in the press release distribution business, regardless of name recognition, may be shaken. As a company that develops a business in which information management is vital, it is necessary to review the quality of information management systems and crisis response.

PR TIMES announcement The company disclosed the specific details of the damage, the history of the company's response, the report to the Personal Information Protection Commission and the police, measures to prevent recurrence, and the impact on business performance to be minor.

In the announcement, the company took a strong stance that it would "take decisive action against fraudulent activities," but did not mention "where to take responsibility," which is essential for responding to scandals of listed companies.

Long-term system of 18 years of current president

Mr. Takumi Yamaguchi, who serves as the representative director of the company, launched the PR TIMES service in 2007 and founded the parent company, a venture PR company vector He has served as president for the next 18 years.

Regarding this issue, there is no tone in the major media reports that question management responsibility. On May 27, 2025, PR TIMES announced that Ordinary General Meeting of Shareholders is planned.