How wave of ‘revenge attacks’ hit Australia

AUSTRALIA’S critical computer networks have come under sustained and wide- ranging cyber attacks since relations with China soured.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison last month blamed a ‘sophisticated state-based cyber actor’ for the unprecedented assault on his nation’s government, businesses, healthcare, education and vital infrastructure.

While he stopped short of ~publicly blaming Beijing for the hostilities, he was less reticent in a phone call to Boris Johnson. The pair are said to have had a ‘stark’ conversation about what they believed was simple revenge from Beijing-backed hackers, even as China denied being behind the hostilities.

Relations had been deteriorating for months after the Australian government led global condemnation of China’s handling of Covid-19. In reply, Beijing accused Canberra of ‘ignorance and bigotry’. A trade war ensued, while behind the scenes the Australian security services were battling a greater menace. Repeated ‘phishing’ attacks were probing weaknesses across all aspects of key Australian i nfrastructure.

Tim Mackey, of the Synopsys Cybersecurity Research Centre, said the attackers were seeking to ‘test vulnerable software’, warning ‘organisations of all sizes’ were at risk. While the attack was rebuffed, experts fear it was just the tip of the iceberg in what China is capable of, while any weaknesses found could be later exploited in an even more devastating attack.

Australian officials reportedly believed that a ban on Huawei sparked the malicious campaign, which is why British Ministers fear a similar attack as the UK prepares to take its own hardline approach to the tech giant.