Australian spy chief warns of Chinese hackers attacking critical infrastructure

Australia’s top intelligence chief, Mike Burgess, has raised the alarm over a growing threat from Chinese-backed hackers who are “probing” the country’s main utility networks.

Burgess, who heads the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, said at a conference in Melbourne that at least two hacker groups with ties to the Chinese government are preparing for sabotage and espionage.

He specifically points to a group called Volt Typhoon, which is attempting to penetrate Australia’s power, water and transportation systems. If successful, the consequences could be far-reaching. A targeted shutdown of energy supply or water networks could cripple both business and society in general.

The US government has previously warned of similar activities, claiming that Volt Typhoon has been injecting malicious software into critical systems for several years. The purpose, according to US intelligence sources, has been to disrupt US defense capabilities in the event of a future conflict over Taiwan.

Multiple groups behind digital attacks

Burgess explained that the threat is not just about one network. He also highlighted another group, known as Salt Typhoon, which is currently attacking telcos and ISPs.

The group steals call data, customer records and internal communications. They have attacked over 200 telecom and data companies, including AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen, according to the FBI, as well as several cloud and data center providers.

According to Techcrunch, the FBI has urged US citizens to use messaging services with full encryption to avoid their conversations being intercepted. This shows how serious the attacks are being assessed on an international level.

Earlier this year, Canada confirmed that its telecommunications companies have been hit by similar hacker attacks, which are also believed to be supported by China.

The question of intent

According to Burgess, there is no way of knowing how far the hackers will go, but they have already shown that they can gain access to systems:

– Once they’re in, it’s a question of intent, not ability.

He warns that the world still underestimates how devastating such attacks can be.

Australian authorities are working closely with both the US and UK to ensure infrastructure is more resilient to digital threats. China has denied all allegations of being behind the attacks, calling the accusations “baseless”.

International experts estimate that the protection of critical networks from these types of threats could will demand great investments in the coming years. The situation shows how vulnerable modern infrastructure has become as digital and geopolitical tensions merge.