GMO: special compensation, a 1-million-dollar reward and a press conference announced
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- Users whose data has been published receive special compensation of up to 3 million yen per publication.
- A reward of up to 1 million US dollars is offered for information identifying the attacker.
- A press conference by the CEO is reported for 2 November, but its content is not yet known.

In this article
The affected service
According to Impress Watch, the attack targets the “FX自動売買専用VPS” (VPS dedicated to automated FX trading) service of the “お名前.com デスクトップクラウド” (Onamae.com Desktop Cloud) product. Malicious programs were installed on users’ servers, and login details for trading accounts, including FX accounts, were reportedly obtained and used. The attacker had announced the publication of data at noon on the 27th, and publications were subsequently observed. GMO says it will “never” give in to this demand.
The special compensation
Users whose data has been published receive a “special compensation payment”, capped at 3 million yen per publication. Impress Watch reports 10,000 yen for basic information, 15,000 for financial and authentication data and 25,000 for sensitive data, with the amounts added together. According to Business+IT, the people concerned are contacted individually; this sum comes on top of the flat-rate payment and the compensation for fraudulent transactions.
The reward and the guidance
GMO has set up a reward capped at 1 million US dollars for any information that helps identify the perpetrator. The desk has been open since noon on 28 October, in Japanese, English and Chinese. The company asks people not to spread the published data and announces legal action against malicious distributors.
The announced press conference
In a headline dated 1 November, the Japan Times announces that GMO’s CEO, Masatoshi Kumagai, will hold a press conference on Monday (2 November) on the cyberattack. The body of the article could not be opened here and the content of the press conference is not known.
Learn the grammar
French grammar
Learn sentence patterns and usage from the article’s own sentences.
01The present indicative
est / sont + attribute (noun, adjective, prepositional phrase)
Le guichet est ouvert depuis le 28 octobre à midi, en japonais, en anglais et en chinois.Key pointsÊtre in the present is est for a singular subject and sont for a plural one. It describes nature, state or place (“is”, “is located”). If what follows (the attribute) is a noun, adjective or prepositional phrase, it is not a passive. If a past participle follows, it is a passive (est annoncé). Headlines and summaries often use the present to describe the current situation.
02The passé composé
present of avoir + past participle
GMO a créé une prime plafonnée à 1 million de dollars américains pour toute information permettant d’identifier l’auteur.Key pointsThe passé composé is the most common past tense, used for “did” and “has done” — actions completed in the past. It is formed with the auxiliary avoir (a / ont…) in the present + a past participle. Past participles of -er verbs end in -é (annoncer → annoncé); learn the irregular ones (faire → fait, prendre → pris, voir → vu). In the negative, ne … pas wraps the auxiliary (n’a pas annoncé). In the news it reports facts that have already happened, such as “announced” or “voted”.
03The imparfait
stem (nous form of the present) + -ais / -ait / -ions / -iez / -aient
L’attaquant avait annoncé la publication de données le 27 à midi, et des publications ont ensuite été constatées.Key pointsThe imparfait describes states, background, habits and actions in progress in the past (il était, elle avait, ils pensaient). Take the nous form of the present, drop -ons, and add -ais / -ais / -ait / -ions / -iez / -aient. If the passé composé gives “the event itself”, the imparfait paints “the situation at the time”.
04The futur simple
stem (infinitive) + -ai / -as / -a / -ons / -ez / -ont
GMO affirme qu’elle ne cédera « jamais » à cette exigence.Key pointsThe futur simple means “will do” or “is planned to”. Add -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont to the infinitive (participer → il participera). Watch the irregular stems: être → ser-, avoir → aur-, aller → ir-, faire → fer-, pouvoir → pourr-, voir → verr-. In the news it is used for fixed plans and outlooks.
05The present conditional
stem (infinitive) + -ais / -ait / -ions / -iez / -aient
Des programmes malveillants ont été installés sur des serveurs d’utilisateurs et des identifiants de comptes de trading, notamment de FX, auraient été récupérés et utilisés.Key pointsThe conditional expresses possibility, supposition, unconfirmed information and polite requests (“would”, “might”). It uses the same stem as the future and the same endings as the imparfait (-ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient): pouvoir → il pourrait. In the news it is used to avoid asserting, as in “is reported to…” or “there is a possibility…”.
06The passive voice in the present
être (est / sont) + past participle (+ par / de)
D’après Business+IT, les personnes concernées sont contactées individuellement ; cette somme s’ajoute à l’indemnité forfaitaire et à la compensation des transactions frauduleuses.Key pointsThe passive means “is done” or “is being done”. It is formed with être + past participle, which agrees with the subject in gender and number (la mesure est adoptée / les mesures sont adoptées). The agent is introduced by par (or de). In the news it is common when the event, rather than the actor, is the focus (est prévu / est annoncé / est connu).
07The passive in the passé composé
a / ont été + past participle
Des programmes malveillants ont été installés sur des serveurs d’utilisateurs et des identifiants de comptes de trading, notamment de FX, auraient été récupérés et utilisés.Key pointsThe past passive means “was done”. Its form is present of avoir + été (past participle of être) + past participle. Été does not change, but the last participle agrees with the subject in gender and number (la loi a été votée / les textes ont été votés). It is frequent in news reporting results such as votes, decisions and announcements.
08Pronominal verbs
se / s’ + verb
D’après Business+IT, les personnes concernées sont contactées individuellement ; cette somme s’ajoute à l’indemnité forfaitaire et à la compensation des transactions frauduleuses.Key pointsA pronominal verb is used with a reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nous, vous) before the verb. It can mean “do to oneself”, “be done” or “do to each other”. In the news, se traduire (to result in), se tenir (to take place), s’agir de (to be a matter of) and se diffuser (to spread) are frequent. The pronoun changes with the subject (il se tient / ils se tiennent / je me souviens).
09Negation and its scope
ne / n’ … pas · ne … plus
L’entreprise demande de ne pas diffuser les données publiées et annonce des poursuites contre les diffuseurs malveillants.Key pointsNormally ne and pas wrap the verb. Before a vowel, ne becomes n’. Check which part of the sentence the negation covers. Ne … plus means “no longer”.
10Citing a source with selon
selon + noun / organisation
Selon Impress Watch, l’attaque vise le service « FX自動売買専用VPS » du produit « お名前.com デスクトップクラウド ».Key pointsSelon means “according to”. Put a person or organisation after it as the source. It separates facts the writer checked directly from what another body or report said. Citing a source does not turn a forecast into an accomplished fact.
11Dates and their prepositions
le + 日付 / du … au …
Le guichet est ouvert depuis le 28 octobre à midi, en japonais, en anglais et en chinois.Key pointsLe 15 octobre means “on 15 October”. Distinguish the le before a date from the le that marks a weekly habit like a weekday. Du is de + le and au is à + le, so decide the meaning from the verb and period expressions around them. Their role depends on the group: a range of dates, the date of a bulletin or another complement.
12Million and milliard followed by de
number + million(s) / milliard(s) + de + noun
GMO a créé une prime plafonnée à 1 million de dollars américains pour toute information permettant d’identifier l’auteur.Key pointsMillion and milliard are nouns, so use de before what is counted. Before a vowel it becomes d’. Mille works differently: look at the quantity as a whole instead of applying the same form.
Japanese grammar
Understand the structure and usage from the text.
01Citing a source: によると
noun + によると
Impress Watchによると、不正アクセスを受けたのは「お名前.com デスクトップクラウド」の「FX自動売買専用VPS」です。Key pointsAs in “LCPによると”, it shows where the information comes from. What that source reported follows. It is used differently from “私にとって”, which gives one’s own opinion.
02Indicating the subject: について
noun + について
ジャパンタイムズは、11月1日付の見出しで、GMOの熊谷正寿社長が月曜日(11月2日)にサイバー攻撃について記者会見を開くと伝えました。Key pointsAs in “予算について”, it shows the topic to be talked about or explained. In the form “〜についての報道”, の is added so that the group qualifies the following noun.
03Giving examples with など
noun / expression + など
利用者のサーバーに不正なプログラムが置かれ、FXなどの取引口座のログイン情報が取得・悪用されたとされています。Key points“暴言など” gives “abusive language” as one example. It is not necessarily a closed list of only the things named. It also helps when reading the scope of a news story.
04The polite past ました
verb stem (連用形) + ました
GMOは、攻撃者の特定につながる情報に、総額100万米ドルを上限とする懸賞金を設けました。Key pointsIn “発表しました”, ました makes a verb polite past. The negative is “ませんでした”. Read the actual date together with the date and time in the text.
05Quoting with と: content and report
plain-form sentence + と + verbe de parole (報じる, 説明する…)
攻撃者は27日12時に情報の公開を予告し、その後、公開が確認されたと伝えられています。Key pointsと takes the content that is reported or explained. In “改定する方針だと報じました”, “改定する方針だ” is what the report said. Separating the content from who said it and how makes long sentences easier to read.
06Linking actions with the て-form
verb て-form + next expression
10月28日の続報からの変化は、補償の内容と懸賞金が分かったこと、そして会見が予定されていることです。Key pointsThe て-form links actions in a series, in order or as a reason. In “確認して、出発する” the relation is judged from the content. In “〜ている” it can show an action in progress or a continuing state.