Anthony Byrne (Holt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Tonight I rise to speak to the member for Fisher's motion on the growing threat posed by cybercrimes, cyberscams and cyberterrorism. I wish to start by commending the work of IDCARE, which is the Australian New Zealand national identity and cyber support service. In 2019 IDCARE will provide support to over 50,000 Australians and New Zealanders who have experienced this identity takeover, cybercrime, cyberscam and cyberbullying. In fact, on the note about identity crime, in December last year, the Australian Institute of Criminology published their reports on the impact of identity crime, revealing that the total annual cost to the economy was $2.65 billion.

To narrow that down to my area: local residents in my electorate of Holt experience cybercrime. As an example, a constituent may receive a call from a person or entity purporting to be from a government service like the Australian Taxation Office or Medicare. It may be people pretending to be from a bank or they may experience a cybercrime simply by wrongly responding to an email. As an example, earlier this month I was dealing with a constituent who had suffered from an ATO scam. They had received a text or an email and they had responded to it. They felt when it was explained to them that it was a scam. They were very humiliated for making a mistake when responding to that email. This is a very common occurrence. It happens from young people that serve me coffee that ask me to things in the morning to the people that assist us in our lives and different areas. It can also be challenging for people from migrant backgrounds, in particular, when experiencing a cybercrime.

Having a service such as IDCARE that can be referred to by the internet is a great resource, and a social-proofing exercise. I would like to support the service, and support its aim of providing critical support for people confronting identity and cybersecurity concerns. The internet is a great connector. It's a great economic tool and it's a great communication tool, but the downside of that tool is that many Australians are affected by identity theft, internet banking fraud, tax fraud, travel fraud, relationship fraud, and other cybercrimes like extortion.

While I have this opportunity, I congratulate the Australian Federal Police on their work in responding and assisting people affected by cybercrime. The AFP always recommends that if someone is affected by an online crime or fraud, the incident should be reported to the Australian Cybercrime Online Reporting Network, and to the Australian Cyber Security Centre—and that's important information for people who may be listening to this broadcast, wondering what to do.

The AFP and others also recommend that people regularly check the Australian Cyber Security Centre's website, because it provides useful information on how to better secure yourself or your business online. The internet, our computers, smartphones and other devices are crucial to our way of life, but it is important that people continue to feel safe using these devices and tools, and not to have to endure the cost of cybercrime. As Deputy Chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, I see examples of and I am briefed about cybercrime, cyberterrorism and cyber espionage, as well as the misuse of people's data by tech companies, cyberterrorists and, as I've said, state-sponsored cyberterrorism. It's an ongoing challenge.

One thing to point out: our security services regularly provide advice to the public about electronic tools that would constitute 'cyberhygiene', such as encouraging Australians to regularly update their software and devices, have strong passwords, have two-factor authentications, and exercise the same judgements online that we do in our everyday life. An everyday example that's been provided to me by the head of a security service is this: 'Think about it in terms of using electronic devices. Everyday life examples would be that we wouldn't give our bank account details or passwords to a complete stranger, so why would we be giving it to a complete stranger online? If the offer online is too good to be true, then it's not safe.'

It's interesting to note, when we're talking about the large social media companies and about the value of data, that there's a program on Netflix called The Great Hack. It basically details how, in 2017, data was proclaimed to have surpassed oil as the world's most valuable asset. What that means is that, as the world's most valuable asset, of course it is going to be targeted by people seeking to access that asset through means fair or foul. That's why I'm happy to speak to this motion. It is something that people need to be aware of. Information is stored, but it is vulnerable. We should continue to support governments' efforts to keep people safe online.

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