Australian Authorities, Companies Facing Cyberattack By Foreign Hackers - Prime Minister

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th June, 2020) Australian government bodies and companies are facing a major cyberattack by a "sophisticated, state-based" hacking group, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday.

"This activity is targeting Australian organizations across a range of sectors, including all levels of government, industry, political organizations, education, health, essential service providers and operators of other critical infrastructure ... We know it is a sophisticated state-based cyber actor because of the scale and nature of the targeting and the tradecraft used," Morrison said, as quoted by the ABC broadcaster.

The prime minister stressed that Canberra would not name the state, which stands behind the cyberattack.

"What I can confirm is there are not a large number of state-based actors that can engage in this type of activity," Morrison noted.

The head of the cabinet added that no large-scale leaks of personal data had been caused by this cyberattack so far.