TOKYO, Oct 27 — A 25-year-old man has become the first person in Japan to be convicted for criminal activities involving generative AI.
According to The Yomiuri Shimbun, the Tokyo District Court found Ryuki Hayashi guilty of creating a computer virus using interactive generative artificial intelligence.
He was sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for four years. Prosecutors had sought a four-year sentence.
The newspaper reported that Hayashi developed the ransomware-like virus at his home in Kawasaki around March 31, 2023, using illegal source code obtained with AI tools.
In May, The Tokyo Times reported police as saying they came to suspect Hayashi of creating malware after arresting him in March this year for allegedly using fake identification to obtain a SIM card registered under someone else’s name.
Hayashi reportedly said at the time that he wanted to “earn easy money” and that he thought he “could do anything” if he used AI.
The police however told the Japan national daily that they believe the malware did not cause any damage as Hayashi is thought to have failed to obtain a programme needed to put the malware into practical use.
