Japanese man arrested after exploiting food delivery app glitch to get over 1,000 free meals
A 38-year-old man from Nagoya, Japan, has been arrested after exploiting a system glitch in a food delivery platform for more than two years, managing to place over 1,000 free orders worth around €21,000.
According to Japanese media reports, the suspect, identified as Takuya Higashimoto, discovered a flaw in the refund policy of Demae-can, one of Japan’s leading food delivery apps. He allegedly took advantage of the “contactless delivery” option introduced during the pandemic to avoid direct contact with couriers and used false identities to conceal his scheme.
After each order, Higashimoto reportedly requested a refund, claiming that the meal had never been delivered. Investigators said he placed 1,095 orders using more than 120 different accounts, all registered under fake names and temporary phone numbers. To further cover his tracks, he purchased prepaid SIM cards and deactivated them immediately after use.
“I couldn’t stop once I started seeing the results of my fraud,” Higashimoto allegedly told investigators.
Demae-can confirmed that the company lost approximately €21,000 due to the fraudulent activity. The company announced it would tighten user identity verification procedures and introduce an automated system to detect suspicious transactions.
The case has sparked widespread debate in Japan about digital platform vulnerabilities and the ease of exploiting cybersecurity loopholes in online services.
