Mike Burgess, director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), recently gave a keynote address at a CEDA business forum in Melbourne. In his keynote, he issued a chilling warning about the rising cyber threats Australia is currently contending with. He emphasized the urgent call for corporate leaders to act. With the backdrop of the especially aggressive foreign actor tactics, they need to invest in robust measures to protect sensitive data.
Burgess was preceded on stage by intelligence counterparts from the Five Eyes alliance. In their joint statement, they showcased their collective concern over the actions of authoritarian regimes, most notably China and Russia. He also emphasized that these countries are actively targeting examples of critical infrastructure assets around the world, including those right here in Australia. As Burgess noted, we’ve had several unsuccessful attempts to breach our critical infrastructure.
Burgess explained that the private sector has the ability to anticipate the risks and know the weaknesses. He implored them to act before these potential threats became a reality. He underscored the very real economic dangers of cyber-enabled sabotage. In fact, according to the Australian Institute of Criminology, each one of these incidents may be costing the Australian economy an average of $1.1 billion.
Burgess described the nation’s present situation as “uncomfortably brittle” when it comes to being targeted by cyber attacks from organized crime groups affiliated with foreign governments. He introduced the fact that espionage is projected to drain the economy of about $12.5 billion dollars during the 2023-24 fiscal year. To add some extra phantoms to the mix, he suggested that foreign actors are acting “more aggressively, more recklessly, more dangerously” than ever before.
In his address, Burgess reflected on the implications of a major cyber attack, asking, “Imagine the implications if a nation-state took down all the networks? Or turned off the power during a heatwave? Or polluted our drinking water? Or crippled our financial system?”
His testimony provided additional detail on the threats from Chinese groups like Salt Typhoon and Volt Typhoon. He claimed that these players have been routinely testing the susceptibilities of Australia’s essential infrastructure. In particular, Burgess disclosed that Volt Typhoon has already penetrated U.S. military installations in Guam. This new, last-minute development is a testament to the dangerous nature of this threat.
“I have previously said we’re getting closer to the threshold for high-impact sabotage,” he noted before delivering a chilling affirmation: “Well, I regret to inform you — we’re there now.”
Burgess’s comments further underscore the increasing alarm among Australian leaders over threats to national security. ASIO chief’s dire warnings should ring alarms and mobilize businesses and government agencies to act. They need to better their own cyber defenses against a fast-moving attack surface.
