On June 19, 2020, Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned Australian businesses and governments about a sustained cyberattack.
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Summary
On June 19, 2020, Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned Australian businesses and governments about a sustained cyberattack. Morrison said the Australian organizations were currently being targeted by a sophisticated foreign “state-based” attacker and emphasized the attacks “hadn’t just started” but were ongoing and constant threats to Australia. The accumulation of attacks required a firm warning to the government and private sectors to take affirmative action to protect their valuable business and personal data.
"This activity is targeting Australian organizations across a range of sectors, including all levels of government, industry, political organizations, education, health, essential service providers and operators of other critical infrastructure," Morrison said. "We know it is a sophisticated state-based cyber actor because of the scale and nature of the targeting and the tradecraft used."
The government’s Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) published an advisory note on June 18 with details of the tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) identified during their investigation of the cyber campaign targeting Australian networks. Morrison said the government would not take formal steps of publicly naming a state behind the attacks, despite blaming a “sophisticated state actor.”