Australia to consolidate approach to cyber defence in light of a wave of ransomware attacks

Secrecy, strategic ambiguity, and offensive cyber capabilities to form part of Australia’s response to cybercrimes.

According to Clare O’Neil, Australian Home Affairs Minister, the country will adopt a more muscular approach to cyber defence in response to a wave of ransomware attacks against Australian firms. Measures will include ‘hacking the hackers’ as part of the country’s offensive cyber capability (OCC), and the general use of strategic ambiguity to strike at cybercriminals while crafting responses to attacks on government and business, especially those demanding a ransom. The government is reportedly considering outlawing the payment of ransoms to disrupt the cybercriminals’ business model.