15 stories this week:
Identity – 13 October 2022
A 30-year-old Queensland man charged with hundreds of identity fraud offences, allegedly also threatened to murder some of his victims when they tried to get their online accounts back.
The messages were uncovered on electronic devices found when a search warrant was executed at a Pallara home last December.
Australia becoming hotbed for cyber attacks – 14 October 2022
Research shows an 81% increase in cyber security incidents in Australia between July 2021 and June 2022. The top three most common risks faced by Australian organisations were automated threats and remote code execution (RCE) or remote file inclusion (RFI).
https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252526094/Australia-becoming-hotbed-for-cyber-attacks
On trial for bravely telling the truth – 14 October 2022
The trial of a whistleblower who spoke up about government wrongdoing has begun in Adelaide. The article looks at why its come to this, considering Richard Boyle told the truth. He spoke up because the Australian Taxation Office, an immensely powerful government agency, was abusing its power. It was ruining the lives of small business owners and Boyle, a tax office employee in its debt recovery division, wanted to do the right thing.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/on-trial-for-bravely-telling-the-truth-20220724-p5b41w.html
Access to digital version SMH required to read the article.
Australian Insurer Back Online After Cyberattack – 14 October 2022
Medibank, a private health insurance company serving nearly 4 million Australians has restored access to its policy writing systems, after taking them offline following a cyber incident. Medibank Chief Executive Officer David Koczkar acknowledged the cyber incident to his customers and also requested the Australian Securities Exchange to impose a “trading halt.”
https://www.bankinfosecurity.com/australian-insurer-back-online-after-cyberattack-a-20274
2.2 million Woolworths MyDeal customers exposed in data breach – 15 October 2022
Woolworths has confirmed MyDeal customers have had their data exposed after a “compromised user credential” was used to hack into the system. Woolworths said MyDeal was in the process of contacting around 2.2 million Aussies by email who have been impacted.
https://au.news.yahoo.com/woolworths-my-deal-customers-exposed-in-data-breach-224405234.html
The lucrative business of romance scams – 15 October 2022
Internet romance scams cost Australians an estimated $142 million last year, but the law can do little to protect people from emotional exploitation. It is possible, that some of this conduct could be captured by coercive control laws, that are soon to be introduced in Queensland and New South Wales. The difficulty is trying to establish how far the law should, or indeed can, go to protect people from the intangible – but real – harms of emotional exploitation.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/life/2022/10/15/the-lucrative-business-romance-scams#mtr
Scams, the Optus data breach and keeping your personal data secure – here are the top tips to help you avoid falling victim – 15 October 2022
Great article that shares some top tips on keeping your data secure and answers questions such as “How does the ACCC identify new and changing scams? Have there been many cases of data breaches being used for coercive control?
Federal government describes reports of Medicare fraud as ‘troubling’, AMA condemns ‘unjustified slur’ on doctors – 18 October 2022
A joint investigation by the ABC and Nine newspapers has found doctors are abusing the $28 billion system, at times putting patients at risk and even billing dead Australians to boost profits. Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the government will seek to get to the bottom of allegations of Medicare rorting.
Federal ICAC whistleblowers ‘will remain silent’ without stronger protections: lawyer – 18 October 2022
Whistleblower protections put forward in the federal government’s national anti-corruption watchdog do not go far enough and could deter people from coming forward with possible misconduct, a human rights lawyer has warned.
How financial services businesses can avoid fraud – 18 October 2022
As the financial system becomes increasingly decentralised, online criminals are becoming more sophisticated in the ways they breach security protocols. This article looks at why financial fraud is on the rise and discusses how businesses in the financial sector can protect themselves, with thorough due diligence tools, including an examination of their existing and potential clients’ credit history and criminal risk.
The threat keeping Australian CEOs up at night – 18 October 2022
The Optus hack is officially a nightmare for corporate Australia and the chief executive of National Australia Bank, Ross McEwan, says the telco’s travails should galvanise every company in the country into action.
Anti-corruption proposal a missed opportunity for whistleblower protection – 18 October 2022
The Human Rights Law Centre has told a parliamentary inquiry that the draft legislation to establish the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) is a missed opportunity for whistleblower protections and should be strengthened.
Australians losing superannuation savings to sophisticated new scam – 19 October 2022
A sophisticated new scam has been uncovered, that targets the retirement nest eggs of Australians. The scam used the names Invest Fast or Invest Quick and pretended to be a financial advice firm based in Melbourne. At least 45 SMSFs were created for potential victims. Investigator Ken Gamble believes there is evidence to link the Invest Quick scam to the Metro Manila call centre.
Collapsed cryptocurrency exchange used customer funds for business loan – 19 October 2022
An Australian cryptocurrency exchange, Blockchain Global that collapsed last year trapping more than $20 million of customer money, dipped into customer funds to provide a loan to support another part of its business instead of keeping the funds on reserve.
Access to digital version of SMH required to read article
Private contractor use in APS was a major corruption risk, NACC whistleblower protections inadequate, inquiry told – 20 October 2022
An explosion in the use of third-party contractors for public service work under the Coalition posed a serious corruption risk, a parliamentary inquiry has heard.
Access to digital version of Canberra times required to read article
