00000JAPAN: free public Wi-Fi during disasters in Japan
00000JAPAN is a common Wi-Fi network name (SSID) that communications operators in Japan add to their public Wi-Fi access points in disaster areas, so that people who are not subscribers can connect for free. No ID or password is required. Traffic is not encrypted, so use it only for minimal purposes such as checking on family and reading disaster information.
Key facts (from official sources)
- Who promotes it: the Wi-Fi Business Promotion Council (Wi-Biz, 一般社団法人無線LANビジネス推進連絡会).
- How to connect: turn Wi-Fi on and tap “00000JAPAN” in the Wi-Fi list. Authentication (ID/password) is not needed.
- When it is available: not always. It is activated in disasters, or when a large-scale outage or congestion occurs on mobile networks. Operators decide when, where and how long. In the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake it was provided about 2.5 to 5.5 hours after the quake.
- Security: Wi-Biz states that no security measures such as encryption are applied. It recommends minimal use, and using HTTPS or a VPN yourself; extra care is needed for personal information, passwords and financial services.
Official links
More detail (Japanese)
Detailed pages are currently in Japanese: how to use, when it is available, security, and preparing communication and power for disasters. Your browser’s translation feature can help.