Tokyo: A 15-year-old high school student in Japan has been arrested for allegedly using ChatGPT to help develop software used in a cyberattack that resulted in the deletion of more than 46,000 user accounts on an anime streaming platform.
According to international media reports, the teenager is accused of creating a program that targeted Bandai Channel, a streaming service operated by Bandai Namco Filmworks. The attack disrupted the platform’s operations and led to the deletion of tens of thousands of customer accounts.
Police said the alleged offense took place in November 2025, and the student is suspected of obstructing business operations through fraudulent electronic means.
Investigators believe the teenager exploited weaknesses in the platform’s security system, forcing the company to temporarily suspend parts of its service.
During questioning, the student reportedly said he began using computers in the fourth grade and wrote the source code himself. However, because the processing took too long, he used ChatGPT to help complete and adapt the code in different programming languages.
Police also said the suspect admitted that he held no personal grudge against Bandai Namco Filmworks, claiming he targeted the platform simply because it had a large number of user accounts that he believed he could access.
Authorities have not alleged that ChatGPT acted independently; rather, they claim it was used as a programming assistance tool in the development of the software involved in the alleged attack.
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