SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia said it was concerned that one in 10 cybersecurity incidents last year involved critical infrastructure, with state-sponsored actors using evolving craftsmanship to target the country’s government, infrastructure and businesses.
The Australian Signals Directorate said in a report on Wednesday that more than 11% of cyber security incidents last year were related to critical infrastructure, including electricity, gas, water, education and transport services.
Of these, a quarter consisted of phishing incidents, 21% of exploitation of a public interface and 15% of brute force activities.
“We are worryingly seeing both cybercriminals and government actors increasingly targeting our critical infrastructure,” Defense Minister Richard Marles said in a radio interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Australia joined international partners in attributing cyber incidents during the year to China, Russia and Iran, he added.
China was developing cyber techniques, where the choice of targets and behavior was “consistent with preparing for disruptive effects rather than traditional cyber espionage operations,” the report said.
Beijing has repeatedly denied claims by the US and Australian governments that it has used hackers to break into foreign computer systems.
