Peter Dutton warns of an 'unprecedented' Chinese cyber onslaught and admits war with the communist superpower is possible
- Defence Minister warns Chinese hackers could take out power in major city
- Australia will ramp up its offensive cyber warfare capability to deter attacks
- Peter Dutton to give speech at launch of new Australian Signals Directorate
- Plans are in the works to launch a 'Space Force' to guard Australian satellites
Australia will ramp up its offensive cyber warfare capabilities to protect itself from being crippled by hostile foreign powers.
Peter Dutton warned China had the ability to launch an 'unprecedented digital onslaught' on vulnerable targets Down Under.
The Defence Minister on Tuesday will outline how Australia plans to adapt to the threat of state-sponsored cyber attacks in a speech to mark the opening of the new Australian Signals Directorate headquarters in Canberra.
Mr Dutton will admit it is 'possible' an attack from Beijing's secret army of hackers could take out a major Australian city's entire power grid resulting in 'injuries, deaths and the loss of essential services'.
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'Some may think such a scenario could not be possible – that you would only read about it in a dystopian novel or see it unfold in a disaster movie. They are wrong,' Mr Dutton will tell the room of spooks during his address.
Scott Morrison in June 2020, shocked the nation by outlining how a 'state-actor' had targeted banks, universities, hospitals, transport networks, electricity grids, and even the military, as part of a lengthy cyber-warfare campaign against Australia.
Although China was not named at the time, the Australian Government last year pointed the finger squarely at Beijing.
Insiders claimed the cyber attack was payback for Australia's decision to ban Chinese state firm Huawei from the national 5G network in 2018 over national security concerns.
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To combat future attempts by foreign governments to infiltrate sensitive Australian institutions, more will be done to strengthen ASD's ability to return fire with their own cyber missiles.
'Australia is not an aggressor in cyberspace. But we are prepared to use it to deter aggression and to respond to serious cyber attacks,' Mr Dutton will say.
'And we will continue to invest in Australia's asymmetric cyber capabilities – especially offensive cyber. Capabilities to hold a potential adversary's forces and infrastructure at risk from a greater distance.
'Capabilities which send a clear deterrent message to any adversary: That the cost they would incur in threatening our interests outweighs the benefits.'
But boosting Australia's cyber warfare capacity is not just limited to the ground.
In a separate speech to the Royal Australian Air Force air and space power conference, Mr Dutton will announce Australia's plan to follow the US lead by launching a 'Space Force'.
The newest branch of the military will be known as the Defence Space Command and is set to focus on protecting critical Australian satellites.
'It's a necessary endeavour with a view to protecting our national interests and our need for a Space Force in the future,' he will say.
'We know that some countries are developing capabilities to threaten or degrade space networks, to target satellites, and to destroy space systems.
'Countries that see space as a territory for their taking, rather than one to be shared.
'For any nation, losing access to space would have significant civil and military consequences. It is a domain which must be used to deter aggression, rather than become a new realm for conflict.'
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