Kadokawa confirms that all Dwango employees’ personal data was likely leaked in cyberattack 

On July 3, Kadokawa Corporation made a new announcement regarding the data that was stolen in the ransomware attack last month. They have confirmed that the personal data of all employees who worked at their Dwango subsidiary has likely been leaked online, along with various other data related to their contractors and legal documents. Included under the Dwango umbrella is game developer and publisher Spike Chunsoft, the video streaming site Niconico, among others. 

Kadokawa Corporation is a Japanese media conglomerate consisting of over 50 group companies. However, the ransomware attack mainly targeted Dwango’s dedicated server. 

In their July 3 statement, Kadokawa clarified what information was highly likely to have been leaked. This included the personal information of all Dwango employees, internal documents (including legal documents), as well as personal information on some employees from affiliated companies.  

Other information likely leaked included contracts between Dwango and external parties, personal information of some creators who uses Dwango’s music monetization services and information related to Kadokawa Dwango Educational Institute (including personal information of some students, student parents and graduates of Dwango operated online high schools).  

Kadokawa Corporation has set up a dedicated helpdesk for those impacted by the leak. They also warn those who may be affected to be alert for malicious emails. They have stated that they will continue to investigate the matter and strengthen their security systems to prevent this kind of situation from happening again. 

As a side note, Elden Ring developer FromSoftware is also part of Kadokawa Corporation, however at the time of writing, there is no confirmation of their information being impacted by the leak. 

Verity Townsend
Verity Townsend

Automaton West Editor and translator. She has a soft spot for old-school Sierra adventure games and Final Fantasy VIII (yes, 8!). Can often be found hunting down weird forgotten games and finding out everything about them. Frequently muses about characters and lines from Metal Gear Solid and Disco Elysium. Aims to keep Automaton fresh and interesting with a wide variety of articles.

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