Australian signals chief warns public to expect more service outages

Essential online services in Australia will likely face more unexpected interruptions as organizations prioritize security fixes over continuous access. The Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) issued this warning on Monday in its annual cyber threat report.

The agency processed 1,500 cybersecurity incidents during the 2025-26 fiscal year. That number represents a 20% increase compared to the previous year. ASD also alerted external organizations, including businesses and government bodies, to more than 4,400 potentially malicious incidents. That notification count rose by 80% in a single year.

Attackers are using artificial intelligence to gather intelligence, disrupt infrastructure, and steal funds. ASD stated that hostile foreign governments and criminals are leveraging these tools to find weaknesses faster. The report noted that state-based actors in the Indo-Pacific region may be conducting preliminary attacks in preparation for future conflicts.

Director General Abigail Bradshaw said Australia must accelerate improvements to its technology foundations. She called for the use of AI tools to automate defensive work. Bradshaw previously discussed ASD's access to Anthropic's Mythos model, a tool that identifies previously unknown flaws in IT systems.

Ageing technology remains a primary vulnerability. Bradshaw highlighted that systems and devices no longer supported by their makers are attractive targets for hackers. Last week, new weaknesses in the PHP programming language forced governments and businesses to rush patches.

Defence Minister Richard Marles and Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke both urged Australians to improve their protections. They stated that the government is preparing for the challenges of emerging technologies. Bradshaw and Marles agreed that security must take precedence over keeping systems online.

The ASD urged organizations to update their systems and report suspicious activity. It advised seeking assistance from the agency when incidents occur. These steps are designed to reduce the risk of breaches as the threat volume continues to rise.

Organizations should expect temporary service unavailability as they implement these security measures. The agency maintains that protecting data is more important than maintaining constant access during these critical windows.