Cyberattacks targeting companies through publicly accessible websites and apps have more than doubled from last year, according to Macnica, a major Japanese cybersecurity company.

There have been 216 cases involving confirmed or suspected data breaches reported so far this year, or 2.6 times the total for all of last year.

Finding vulnerabilities in individual websites has traditionally required considerable time and money, but advances in artificial intelligence are believed to have made it easier for attackers to identify weaknesses.

At a ministerial meeting on cybersecurity held Monday, officials presented an analysis showing that attackers are increasingly scanning web-based systems to find entry points and steal personal information in a short period of time.…