Australia subject to 'state-based' cybersecurity attack, PM Morrison says

Australia subject to 'state-based' cybersecurity attack, PM Morrison says
PHOTO: Reuters

SYDNEY - Australia’s prime minister revealed Friday (June 19) his country was under a broad cyber-attack from a "state-based actor" targeting government, public services and businesses, with suspicions falling on China.

The attacks have targeted all levels of the government, political organisations, essential service providers and operators of other critical infrastructure, Mr Scott Morrison said in a media briefing in Canberra.

"We know it is a sophisticated state-based cyber actor because of the scale and nature of the targeting," he said.

Mr Morrison said there were not a lot of state actors that could launch this sort of attack, but Australia will not identify which country was responsible.

China, Iran, Israel, North Korea, Russia, the United States and a number of European countries are known to have developed cyber warfare capabilities.  

Suspicions immediately fell on Beijing, which has recently slapped trade sanctions on Australian products amid an escalating row over Chinese influence.  

Public broadcaster ABC cited "senior sources" confirming that China was believed to be behind the attacks. 

"There is a high degree of confidence that China is behind the attacks," one Australian government source told Reuters, seeking anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to media.

Two government sources said the nature of the recent attacks matches a 2019 attack on Australia’s parliament and three largest political parties.

China’s embassy in Canberra did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Australia’s Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said advice showed no large-scale personal data breaches from the attack, as she urged businesses and organisations to ensure any web or email servers are fully updated with the latest software and the use of multi-factor authentication. 

An Australian government source said Mr Morrison’s public declaration was an attempt to raise the issue with those who could be targeted. 

Australia’s chief cyber intelligence agency said its investigations have so far found no evidence that the actor attempted to be "disruptive or destructive" once within the host’s network.

Mr Morrison said that he had notified the leader of the opposition and state leaders of the cyber-attacks, which he described as "malicious".  He did not elaborate on what type of attacks had taken place.

[[nid:485430]]

Mr Morrison said he had spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday about the issue, while briefings to other allies have also been conducted. 

The revelation comes after Reuters reported Canberra had determined in March last year that China was responsible for a hacking attack on Australia’s parliament.

Australia never publicly identified that source of the attack and China denied it was responsible.

A US security ally, Australia strained ties with its largest trading partner, China, by pushing for an international inquiry into the source and spread of Covid-19 that was first detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.

Australia has also accused China of fuelling a virus "infodemic" and engaging in economic "coercion". 

China – increasingly unwilling to tolerate criticism of its more aggressive foreign policies – has warned its students and tourists against going to Australia, threatened more sanctions and sentenced an Australian citizen to death for drug trafficking.

Beijing and Canberra have also sparred over access to natural resources, maritime claims and the use of Chinese state-backed technology companies. 

Canberra’s ex-spymaster last year accused Beijing of wanting to "take over" Australia’s political system with an "insidious" and systematic campaign of espionage and influence-peddling.

Mr Duncan Lewis, who resigned in September after five years as head of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (Asio), explicitly pointed the finger at China, in unusually blunt comments from such a senior former official.

"Espionage and foreign interference is insidious," Mr Lewis told the Sydney Morning Herald at the time.

This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.