Australia’s top cyber-security agency has warned that artificial intelligence is rapidly increasing the speed and sophistication of cyber attacks, making further disruptions to government, businesses and essential services increasingly difficult to avoid.
The Australian Signals Directorate recorded a 20% increase in major cyber-security incidents requiring its response during the past financial year.
Australians also made more than 82,000 cybercrime reports, while the agency’s cyber-security hotline received more than 37,500 calls.
ASD director-general Abigail Bradshaw said the emergence of advanced AI models had fundamentally changed the threat environment by allowing attackers to identify and exploit weaknesses faster and at greater scale.
The risks range from data breaches and fraud to interruptions affecting websites, businesses and critical infrastructure.
AI becomes weapon and defence
The agency said criminal groups and state-backed actors are increasingly using AI to automate parts of cyber attacks and identify vulnerabilities that previously required highly skilled human operators.
Australia has already experienced incidents involving autonomous AI agents interacting unexpectedly with government systems.
At the same time, ASD is using AI to strengthen its own capabilities, including software development, threat detection and offensive cyber operations.
In one recent operation, Australian cyber specialists disabled malware infrastructure linked to around 180,000 compromised computers worldwide.
The agency also destroyed roughly 5 terabytes of stolen information before criminals could sell it, including millions of files belonging to Australian victims.
The message for businesses is becoming increasingly urgent.
Cyber security can no longer be treated simply as an IT issue, with AI making outdated software, weak suppliers and poorly protected networks easier targets than ever before.
