We live in an era when many people’s personal information is being leaked.
At present, it seems that most crimes target large numbers of people indiscriminately—for example, sending phishing emails and making unauthorized withdrawals from their bank accounts. Unless the questioner is in a position where a specific person might target them for some reason, it probably isn’t very likely that someone would go out of their way to investigate their information and attack them individually.
That said, this only reflects the current situation, and nothing is guaranteed, now or in the future.
Major companies and local governments—like Times, Lawson, and city halls—are being targeted because they’re profitable targets. With AI, security vulnerabilities can be identified almost instantly, so I expect this kind of thing to keep happening as AI continues to advance.
Even local governments can be attacked and have information leaked, so for now, once you’re targeted, there doesn’t seem to be much you can do to prevent it.
As a club, we’ve passed an assessment by a third-party organization that certifies personal-information protection, so we can say that we manage personal data more carefully than other dating clubs. However, defending against AI-powered cyberattacks would still be difficult. It’s not something that can necessarily be solved through systems alone.
From now on, information leaks are probably inevitable, so it will be important to anticipate what could happen and respond quickly when an incident occurs. Maybe we’re entering an era where people who aren’t well-informed are the ones who lose out.
If your driver’s license information gets leaked, it could be used fraudulently—for example:
- Opening bank accounts for money laundering
- Getting a cellphone contract and using it for criminal activity
- Taking out loans from consumer-finance companies using your license
Once you realize your information has been leaked, it’s important to report it to the police and take steps to invalidate the license so these things can’t be done.
In the case of a driver’s license, though, it may not be all that frightening—or at least the actual damage may be limited.
Once quantum computers are fully operational, they may be able to crack passwords almost instantly, making it easy to break through security.
As we approach that kind of era, the important questions won’t be whether someone tells you, “Are you sure you’re safe?” but rather:
How can you protect yourself?
How much can you minimize the damage?
Do you have a way to deal with it if something happens?
That’s what will really matter, I think.
This is just my personal opinion, though...
There’s no point worrying about it now.
I’d expect the information to be kept for several years after you leave, just in case an incident occurs. That’s something you should consider before signing up in the first place. Besides, does the person asking really have a specific cutoff—like feeling safe if it’s kept for one year after leaving, but not if it’s three?
And would it really be that serious if an image of your driver’s license were leaked? The leaked image wouldn’t come with anything proving where it came from.
