JR East fails to disclose data tampering for seven years

East Japan Railway Co., or JR East, said Friday that it has failed for seven years to disclose data-tampering misconduct in the process of fitting wheels to axles.
There were cases in which pressure applied in the process exceeded the upper limit set by the company or fell short of the lower limit, according to the company. It admitted that data was tampered in some cases.
The misconduct occurred in a rail yard of JR East in Tokyo’s Shinagawa Ward and was detected in March 2017.
The company said that it did not make the misconduct public as it did not breach any transport ministry ordinance.
The announcement came after the ministry ordered railway operators across the country to conduct urgent inspections after similar misconduct at Japan Freight Railway Co., or JR Freight, came to light.