U.S. data breach may hit NICOS

Private information on some 6,500 customers of credit cards issued in Japan by Nippon Shinpan Co. may have been exposed to fraud in connection with a security breach in the United States involving MasterCard International Inc., company officials said Sunday.

The Japanese credit firm has issued credit cards jointly with MasterCard, which has informed Nippon Shinpan of a possible data leak involving NICOS cardholders who had used the cards in the U.S.

The NICOS case is the first confirmed in Japan following the possible leak of MasterCard's data. It is feared that more cases may follow because a host of Japanese banks, distribution and credit companies have issued payment cards in tieups with MasterCard or Visa.

Industry sources estimate that through fiscal 2003 half of the credit cards in Japan were issued in alliance with MasterCard or Visa.

Credit companies and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry are working to assess the situation and check for fraud among Japanese cardholders, the sources said.