Overview

• Japan’s National Police Agency is considering amending the Stalker Regulation Law to let police issue warnings on their own authority without a victim’s application.
• The prospective revision would newly regulate the covert use of loss‑prevention tags that pair with smartphones to obtain someone’s location without consent.
• Consultations over alleged misuse of location data rose from 155 in 2021 to 883 in 2024, while 39 cases were prosecuted for violations in 2024.
• Reports specifically about unwanted placement of loss‑prevention tags increased from 113 in 2022 to 370 in 2024, reflecting wider retail availability of the devices.
• A fatal case in Kawasaki in April, where police gave only an oral caution rather than a formal warning, has intensified calls for quicker interventions as prohibition orders can take time to issue.