Australian Government Systems Under Attack

An Australian official today confirmed reports that the government's systems are under cyber attack, but he refused to speculate on the source.

In announcing that Australia's participation in Cyber Storm II, an international simulation designed to test government and private defenses, Attorney-General Robert McClelland said the government "has detected attempted intrusions in respect to obviously government agencies," a report said.

Attacks on private institutions in Australia have been detected as well, McClelland said.

Observers have been speculating that the attacks may come from China, which was accused of testing the cyber defenses of the U.S., Germany, and other countries last year. The Pentagon issued a report expressing concerns about Chinese cyber attack capabilities just last week. (See China Makes 'Most Successful Cyber Attack Ever' on the Pentagon.)

But McClelland declined to give details on the attacks or their sources. "Given the nature of the attempts at intrusion, it is both unsafe and inappropriate to speculate as to the sources," he reportedly said.

Have a comment on this story? Please click "Discuss" below. If you'd like to contact Dark Reading's editors directly, send us a message.