NEW COORDINATED CYBERCRIME CRACKDOWN TO MAKE US SAFER

Member for Wannon, Dan Tehan has welcomed a new push to crackdown on cyber-criminals, saying it will help make our local community safer into the future.

The Morrison Government has launched Australia’s National Plan to Combat Cybercrime and opened a new Australian Federal Police-led centre dedicated to combatting online crime.

“We all know how much of our life is conducted online - from banking to appointments and business transactions. That’s why cyber security is so vital. We must have the tools and capabilities to take down those who prey on people online. That’s always been the focus of our government,” Mr Tehan said.

“The National Plan and our new dedicated law enforcement centre is another step to help keep Australians and their data safe.”

Minister for Home Affairs Karen Andrews said the National Plan and the AFP’s new cybercrime centre would bring together the experience, powers, capabilities, and intelligence needed to build a strong response to cybercrime.

“During the pandemic, cybercrime became one of the fastest-growing forms of crime committed against Australians. The tools and techniques used to rob or extort Australians became more effective and more freely available,” Minister Andrews said.

“This is why the Morrison Government is taking strong, decisive action to safeguard Australians, their data, and our shared digital future.”

The National Plan will support industries to grow online and build wider confidence in the digital economy. It will also secure safer online spaces for children. And it will provide more support for law enforcement to bring cybercriminals to justice.

“Using these new laws and high-end technical capabilities, police will aggressively target cyber threats and shut them down,” Mr Tehan said.

The new centre – the Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre (JPC3) – is based in the AFP’s NSW Headquarters. It has been established with $89 million in funding provided through the Morrison Government’s $1.67 billion Cyber Security Strategy.

The National Plan to Combat Cyber Crime is available for download from the Department of Home Affairs website.

Both initiatives build on the Morrison Government’s comprehensive cybersecurity measures, including:

• securing landmark reforms to national security legislation to better protect our critical infrastructure;
• making all Australians safer through passage of important legislation to revolutionise the way Australian agencies investigate and prosecute cybercrime;
• ensuring our law enforcement agencies have much needed powers to combat crime on the dark web;
• cracking down and protecting Australians from ransomware through the Ransomware Action Plan;
• facilitating the exchange of digital information with US authorities by signing the CLOUD Act Agreement with the United States; and,
• launching a public information campaign to increase Australian’s cyber security.