The Japanese File is a revealing account of Japanese intelligence activities in Southeast Asia, and Malaya in particular, before the outbreak of the Pacific War in December 1941. The material was first drafted in 1942 after the fall of Singapore, and was derived largely from the files prepared by the Special Branch of the Straits Settlements Police, which were taken out of Singapore about three weeks before the surrender of the city. This is the first time this formerly confidential information has been presented to the public in book form.