Australia joins US and UK to warn of 2021 Ransomware trends

Australian Cyber Security Centre

The ACSC, along with cyber security partners from the US and UK, has released an advisory on ransomware attacks and trends that have had an impact in Australia and globally, including on critical infrastructure.

The joint advisory from the ACSC, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), National Security Agency (NSA), and the United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC-UK), provides essential guidance for organisations and individuals to strengthen their defences against these critical ransomware threats.

In the latest ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report highlights there were almost 500 ransomware related cybercrime reports received in the 2020-21 financial year, an increase of almost 15 per cent compared to the previous financial year – with ransom demands ranging from thousands to millions of dollars.

The report showed approximately one-quarter of reported cyber incidents impacted Australia’s critical infrastructure, including essential services such as education, health, communications, electricity, water and transport.

The ACSC has published the Ransomware Prevention and Protection Guide so all Australians can learn how to mitigate ransomware threats.

Read the full joint cyber security advisory on CISA’s website.

Read the joint media release on CISA’s website.

Read the supporting media release from Assistant Minister for Defence, The Hon Andrew Hastie.

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