13 Major Japanese Credit Card Companies and ACSiON Expand Joint Initiative to Shut Down Phishing Sites

13 major Japanese credit card companies (see "Company Profile"), ACSiON Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "ACSiON"), the Anti-Phishing Council, and the Japan Credit Card Association (hereinafter referred to as "JCCA") will expand their joint efforts to shut down phishing sites (hereinafter referred to as "this initiative") started in April 2025, aimed at deterring phishing damage intended to illicitly obtain credit card information.

In April 2025, the shutdown of phishing sites across eight credit card companies was initiated for the first time in Japan*1, achieving significant results. From April 2026 onwards, five new domestic credit card companies will join, bringing the total to 13 companies, to significantly expand the scope of phishing site shutdowns for further deterrence. This will enable more comprehensive phishing countermeasures, further strengthening proactive prevention and ensuring the safety of credit card users.
*1 Based on JCCA research as of March 2026

1. Background
The total damage from unauthorized credit card use in 2025 reached 51.05 billion yen, continuing to remain at a high level (see Figure 1). Furthermore, about 75% of the damage is estimated to stem from phishing*2, making phishing countermeasures one of the most important issues in the credit card industry. In addition, the number of phishing reports has reached approximately 2.45 million annually (see Figure 2), and the threat continues to expand.
*2 Based on JCCA research as of March 2026

In recent years, phishing sites have diversified beyond credit card companies and financial institutions to include EC/service providers, aviation/transportation providers, and delivery providers, and tactics have become more sophisticated and varied, such as combining multiple channels like email and SMS. While many credit card companies work on detecting and shutting down phishing sites that impersonate their own sites, a large amount of information such as credit card numbers is also being defrauded from phishing sites that impersonate businesses other than credit card companies. To address these issues, eight domestic credit card companies have collaborated since April 2025 to build a highly effective system for deterring phishing damage that impersonates businesses outside the credit card industry.

[Figure 1: Trends in credit card fraud occurrences]
Source: Processed by JCCA based on the figures of "Damage Situation of Unauthorized Use of Credit Cards" by Japan Consumer Credit Association

[Figure 2: Trends in the number of phishing reports]
Source: Processed by JCCA based on the figures of "Phishing Report 2025" by Anti-Phishing Council

2. Results of this initiative in FY2025 (as of April to December)
From the start of operation on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, to Wednesday, December 31, 2025...