Australians should prepare for online services to go down unexpectedly as threats rise, cyber agency warns

Key points

• Australians should prepare for more basic online services to go offline unexpectedly, the Australian Signals Directorate has warned. Its annual cyber threat report says hostile foreign governments, criminals and hackers are using artificial intelligence to gather intelligence, disrupt infrastructure and steal money.
• The agency responded to 1,500 cybersecurity incidents in the 2025-26 year, up 20 per cent, and notified external entities of more than 4,400 potential malicious incidents. Director general Abigail Bradshaw said security must come before availability, and that AI tools are needed to automate defences.
• Legacy technology was named among the biggest risks.