Information Security in Australia

2025

Ban on children under 16 using social networks

In November 2025, it became known that the Australian Parliament passed a law prohibiting the use of social networks by children under 16 years old. This is the first time in the world that such a ban has received the status of a law. Tech giants must take steps to ensure underage users do not have access to the platforms.

According to CNN, companies face a fine of up to $50 million Australian dollars ($32 million) for violation. The bill was confirmed by the Senate on the evening of the last working day of parliament in 2024. It took only a week to discuss the law. Most parliamentarians supported the initiative.

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Фото: Freepik

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised the new law and said it sends a message to parents that the government supports them. Platforms now have a social responsibility to keep children safe as a priority, he said.

Earlier, Albanese said in parliament that there was no time to waste. He noted that social media can be a weapon for bullies, a platform for peer pressure, a source of anxiety, a tool for scammers. At worst, they become a tool for online predators.

The bill was supported by a majority of members of the main opposition party, the Liberal Party. Liberal Senator Maria Kovacic called it a turning point for the country. She stated that the authorities drew a line. The huge power of big tech companies can no longer remain out of control in Australia, she said.

The bill has faced stiff opposition from some independent MPs and small parties. Green Party senator Sarah Hanson-Young accused the main parties of trying to "cheat" Australian parents. She called what was happening a disaster.

Hanson-Young claimed it was a race to the bottom with an attempt to show who could be tougher. In her opinion, as a result, young people will find themselves in even greater isolation. At the same time, platforms will be able to continue to operate without restrictions, since they are no longer required to be socially responsible. She stressed the need to make social media safer for everyone.^[1]

Australia's biggest airline Qantas admits to data breach of 6m customers and reveals how hack happened

On July 2, 2025, the largest Australian airline Qantas reported a cyber attack on its IT infrastructure. As a result of the hacker invasion, the personal data of about 6 million customers leaked. Read more here.

2023: One of Australia's largest taxi calling services shut down due to cyber attack

In early February 2023, the digital travel booking service Australia at Black and White Cabs was forced to stop working after cyber attacks intruders, leaving passengers with disabilities and children temporarily stranded. Frustrated users expressed their dissatisfaction social networks in the after. More here.

2022

Fire service in Australia shut down all computer systems after cyber attack

On December 16, 2022, it became known that the Australian Fire and Rescue Service in Victoria (Fire Rescue Victoria, FRV) was forced to disconnect its IT network and go offline due to a cyber attack. Read more here.

The Australian Department of Defense was subjected to a cyber attack. The data of tens of thousands of servicemen leaked

On October 31, 2022, it became known that the Australian Department of Defense was subjected to a hacker attack: attackers injected malware with ransomware functions into one of the department's information subsystems. It is said that in the hands of criminals could be personal information about tens of thousands of military personnel. Read more here.

2020

Launch of a national program to block phishing SMS using the blockchain

On September 15, 2020, it became known about the launch Australia of a national blocking program. phishing SMS The solution uses blockchain technology, a local telecommunications company takes part in the project. Telstra

In an interview with ZDNet, Telstra CEO Andy Penn noted that the proof of concept phase has come to an end, and a full deployment of the program should be expected by the end of 2020. The project is focused on blocking phishing messages sent to users primarily on behalf of government services.

Work on a national program to block phishing SMS was carried out in conjunction with the Australian Cyber ​ ​ Security Center (ACSC). Penn explained that the ACSC's involvement allowed the company to establish information sharing between government and industry, giving project participants a better chance of mitigating the effects of malicious acts.

Australia launches national program to block phishing SMS using blockchain

It's not that the ACSC has something that we don't have, or we have something that the ACSC doesn't - we both look at the world differently and we both have access to information that the other side probably doesn't, "Penn said.

The Telstra initiative, called Cleaner Pipes, is aimed at blocking botnets, downloading Trojans that assume remote access to infected devices, as well as other forms of malware. The solution uses metadata to determine the name substitution when sending messages, and subsequently the attack is blocked.

The head of Telstra believes that the Australian authorities should openly talk about the actions taken to combat cybercrime in the country and consider different measures to punish attackers.

Australian Defense Minister Linda Reynolds told ZDNet that if successful, other Australian telecommunications companies would also join the project.^[2]

Allocation of another $1 billion for cybersecurity "due to Chinese attacks"

On June 30, 2020, Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia, announced the decision of the authorities to allocate $926.1 million over the next decade for the development of the cybersecurity industry. Such investments are expected to enable Canberra to successfully counter hacker attacks.

Morrison's announcement comes state power after a number of attacks were carried out on bodies, essential service providers as well as critical infrastructure operators a few weeks ago. Australia refuses to disclose who may be involved in the attacks. However, several sources familiar with the situation told the news agency Reuters that they were under suspicion of Australia, China although Beijing denied these assumptions.

Australia will strengthen its cybersecurity by $1 billion

In a statement, Morrison noted that the government's priority is to protect the economy, national security and the sovereignty of the state. According to Linda Reynolds, Australia's defence minister, the extra amount of funds is part of an investment package formed by the state in the wake of the attack on parliament, as well as three major political parties in 2019. It is known that more than $322 million will be used to form new units in the Australian Radio Engineering Defense Directorate (ASD) and to hire more than 500 cybersecurity experts. The country is also ready to finance research and development in this area, necessary for timely identification of threats and data exchange.

Reynolds drew attention to the fact that hacker attacks did not cause serious failures in the functioning of important systems and did not provoke the leakage of confidential information, as the department was able to quickly inform enterprises and organizations about the need to take additional measures to protect data and prevent attacks.^[3]

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