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JAPAN DITCHES FLOPPY DISKS : A STEP TOWARD DIGITAL MODERNIZATION

Japan’s Digital Agency has announced an end to the use of floppy disks in government computer systems, keeping them only in an environmental monitoring context for vehicle recycling. This announcement marks the culmination of an initiative launched by Taro Kono, who was appointed to head the agency in 2022, to eliminate obsolete technologies.

In the past, some 1,900 government procedures in Japan used dated media such as floppy disks, fax machines, CDs, and MiniDiscs, although these were considered outdated in many other parts of the world. The use of these technologies was maintained for specific needs until recently.

Japan is not the only country that has extended the use of floppy disks beyond their period of normal use. Until 2019, the U.S. Department of Defense employed 8-inch floppy disks for the Strategic Automated Command and Control System ( SACCS ), a 1970s computer system intended for managing nuclear launch codes and sending emergency messages to military centers and operational units.

The decision to upgrade technologies in government and military infrastructures is a crucial step toward more secure and efficient systems. This change reduces the risks associated with the use of antiquated tools and improves the management of sensitive information, underscoring the need to adapt to contemporary technological requirements.