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AUSTRALIA’S protection against and response to increasing cyber-attacks has improved ahead of a major shift in security as frontier artificial intelligence models speed up incidents, according to the Australian Signals Directorate.
* There were more than 37,500 hotline calls and 82,000 cybercrime reports in 2025/26
* There were more 1500 cyber security incidents, an increase of 20 per cent
* More than 4,400 individuals and collective entities were notified of potential malicious cyber activity, nearly double the rate of the previous year
* The directorate responded to 139 ransomware incidents and blocked more than 564 million malicious domains from infiltrating federal, state and territory government internet users
* Individual self-reported cybercrime cost $33,000, consistent with the previous report
* Businesses self-reported an average cybercrime cost of $93,500 with medium business up 45 per cent to $141,300
* Identity fraud remained the top reported cybercrime
* The cybersecurity agency has called for further testing of frontier AI models in collaboration with operators and Five Eyes countries
* It has also urged for outdated technology across all sectors to be updated
* It also recommends "digital hygiene", which includes changing passwords, updating software and disconnecting tech from the internet if it doesn't need connection to reduce risk in the emerging AI landscape
* Organisations should also prioritise security over access as cyber-attacks are set to ramp up