Re: Personal information - to what extent is it protected in Japan?
Declan Murphy wrote:
> Al wrote:
>
>>Someone i know has been raising the question lately as to whether making
>>a someone's name, date of birth, and current address public without that
>>person's consent is legally OK in Japan. For example, if information of
>>that sort is published in a printed publication or on the internet, does
>>it violate any existing laws in Japan or not? Is there a difference in
>>how informaiton in print and informaiton on the internet is considered?
>
> Given that Okazaki has annually printed the names, registered address
> (from the juminhyou), and the total amount of tax paid by top income
> earners for many decades, I doubt it would be illegal to also print
> their date of birth. I'm in Sapporo until next week, but can confirm
> with the "usual suspects" when I return.
The privacy law changed in 2005 and there are a lot of strictures as to
what can be published and who can publish it as well as who can hold
data on file and what can be released to a third party. Of course, laws
are for civilians and not for kanryo. It has become a lot more
difficult to get even basic information from most government sources.
Large business entities aren't much better.
I visit the National Tax Agency occasionally in the course of my work
and can't say anyone there is the sharpest pencil in the box. There has
recently been growing protests regarding the annual taxpayer information
reports from the people whose names are published. After half a
century, people are just starting to twig to the fact that the "Top
Taxpayer" charts actually violate several basic laws and always have.
Someone in the tax office decided that if you call it a "privilege" and
say it is to encourage tax avoiders to pay up, then everything is okay.
But, in the last couple of years a number of people who made the list
have complained loudly, much to the bewilderment of the tax office
people who honestly don't understand the potential danger of publishing
where someone lives and how much money they have. And, because it's not
their department, tax people don't know that, with a little bit of
effort, you can get a dimensional layout of the person's house and
office from another department in the local yakusho ... nor do any of
them seem to understand the significance of that. Some gangs do, though.
But, as for the original question, it depends on what you publish, who
publishes it, and what the intention is. In which case, your question
contains insufficient data. Like a lot of things in Japan it is easier
to apologize than to ask permission. This is one of those times where
paying Yen 5,000 to the local bar association for a 30 minute
inculcation in the ground rules may not be a bad idea. It may not be a
good one, either.
>>I am aware that these are "tough" questions, given the vaguenes or
>>sparseness of so many laws in this part of the world, but perhaps
>>someone here can offer an educated opinion...
>
> Someone here offering an educated opinion?
How about an opinion based upon experience? One of the legacies of the
Koizumi years is that a lot of basic information on people and
institutions that was once readily obtainable in the public domain has
gone behind walls and under counters manned by people who have no
intention of letting it out. The number of hoops that must be jumped
through is in the increase and the local petty bureaucrat is king of the
hill.
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