Australias Minister for Cyber Security Clare O’Neil made a strong statement on the Four Corners television show last night, stating that "Australia is not a soft target and we are fighting back".
In the wake of the Latitude cyber-attack, which affected nearly 14 million Australians and New Zealanders, the Minister has urged the Federal Police and the cyber guns in the signals directorate to collaborate and focus their efforts on “debilitating and degrading” the capabilities of hacking groups.
To ensure that financial institutions and banks are adequately prepared for potential cyber threats, the Minister has previously proposed a series of ‘war-gaming exercises’.
Furthermore, she is advocating for a ban on ransom payments, further highlighting the government's stern stance on tackling cybercrime.
I have a message for all cyber-criminals: Australia is not a soft target and we're fighting back.#4Corners pic.twitter.com/K3dJtcuxu3
— Clare O'Neil MP (@ClareONeilMP) April 18, 2023
No ransom from Latitude
Latitude Financial Services made a bold move last week by refusing to give in to the ransom demands of cybercriminals responsible for the recent attack on its systems.
This decision aligns with Australia's strong stance against paying ransoms to cybercriminals, as the government believes it is time to take action.
One proposed initiative is the banning of ransomware payments, which has led the Australian Government to form an expert board led by Andy Penn, former CEO of the country's largest telecommunications company, Telstra.
While Penn supports the ban, he suggests that there should be exceptions to the rule.
Cyber security is national security.
That’s why we’re bringing together Australia’s most critical services across the whole economy together to conduct exercises to test and better prepare for potential cyber-attacks. pic.twitter.com/wn4SkdagZE
— Clare O'Neil MP (@ClareONeilMP) April 14, 2023
Target of major data breaches
During the past year, Australian companies have increasingly become the target of cyberattacks by hackers demanding millions of dollars in hard-to-trace digital assets.
These attacks have had devastating consequences, with several companies suffering major data breaches.
Last September, Optus, the second-largest telecommunications company in Australia, was hacked, and more than 10 million customer accounts were compromised.
Shortly after, Medibank, one of the country's largest health insurers, also fell victim to a cyberattack, resulting in sensitive medical records for millions of customers being accessed.
While the Optus hackers withdrew their ransom demands, Medibank chose not to bow to the ransom demands resulting in a massive data dump affecting millions of customers.