The Latest Methods Used By Cybercriminals To Deceive Australians Are "Vishing," " Quishing," And AI Frauds.
Critical Infrastructure Is Being Targeted By State-Sponsored Hackers And Cybercriminals Who Are Using "Shifting Tactics," According To The Australian Signals Directorate.
The Country's signal intelligence agency has warned that, as fraudsters capitalize on the popularity of the technology, they are using sophisticated artificial intelligence scams or fake QR codes to trick Australians into downloading dangerous files or disclosing personal information. The Australian Signals Directorate also raised the alarm about the " Shifting Tactics " of state-sponsored hackers and cybercriminals, who they claim are infiltrating business and other organizations' computer systems and then sitting quietly to avoid detection until they decide to strike.
Abigail Bradshaw, the director general of ASD, stated that " State-Sponsored cyber operations increase as geostrategic tensions change, while cybercriminals and hacktivist also remain an ongoing persistent threat." According to the ASD report, 11% of cybersecurity incident's involved systems being penetrated by intruders, malware infections, and denial of service assaults, and these incidents targeted essential infrastructure such as transportation, gas, water, and power.
Using anonymized instances of hospital and water infrastructure targeted by criminals, including Ransomware or extortion, water system manipulation, and data theft, the report referred to Australia's vital infrastructure as an " Attractive Target." According to 2023-24 assessment, cyber threats targeting Australia's most important networks have evolved, and State-Sponsored cyber actors and cybercriminals are using different strategies to target these networks, Bradshaw said.
Research also highlighted the use of popular technology, such as AI and QR codes, by crooks to defraud victims. ASD cautioned that criminals may utilize AI to swiftly produce content for more complex operations like deep fake audio or video clips or phishing or scam emails. Cybersecurity is everyone's responsibility, Bradshaw said, adding that all technology users must remain vigilant about new threats in the present " Cyber Threat Environment."
