Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Home Affairs. Will the minister please update the House on what steps the Morrison government is taking to keep Australians safe and protect both our way of life and Australia's critical infrastructure, especially from the threat of cyberattacks? Is the minister aware of any alternative approaches?

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party, Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

ANDREWS (—) (): I thank the member for her question. Tackling the threat of cybercrime has been an absolute priority for the Morrison government. As the director-general of ASIO said just last week in his annual threat assessment, during the pandemic we have all spent more time online, and that means that there have been a number of security challenges that have been presented to us and that we have to deal with.

Last financial year alone, the Australian Cyber Security Centre received more than 67,500 cybercrime reports, and over a quarter of those incidents were on critical infrastructure systems. These critical infrastructure systems are the systems that deliver essential services that all Australians rely on, and they include things such as water and sewerage, energy, our banking and financial services, transport, and food and groceries. Any threat to these very vital services is a threat to our way of life.

That's why last November the Morrison government introduced into parliament, and passed, the first tranche of its critical infrastructure reforms so that our nation is much better equipped to deal with a range of threats, including cyberattacks. That was the first stage of a two-part legislative approach, and last week I introduced the second tranche of our critical infrastructure legislation into parliament. That includes changes that will deal with risk management systems and how requirements for systems of national significance are actually put in place and administered. In addition, we have been progressing work on our ransomware action plan. We released that last October. We've been going through a process of consultation with businesses and with the community. Under that plan, there will be a range of new criminal offences and tougher penalties, and we will hit the cybercrooks where it hurts them most, and that is in their bank balances.

There is absolutely no doubt that our nation is facing a very clear threat when it comes to cybercrime, and businesses, individuals and governments all need to be resolute in tackling it. The suite of measures that we have introduced as a government is delivering a very sound and a very clear message to anyone considering interfering with our critical infrastructure and our way of life. The message is: 'You will not be successful and you will face very tough penalties.' As a government, we will always act in the best interests of Australians and make sure that jobs and essential services are well protected. We will always continue to do that. We understand that national security is a very serious task and not one that should be risked to a party that lacks the resolve or the gravitas to tackle serious issues in a responsible and resolute way. (Time expired)