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China-backed hacker group unmasked by Australia and allies
A cyber group acting on behalf of China’s powerful minister of state security has been blamed for espionage and hacks targeting the Australian government and private sector networks, AAP reports.
The Australian government has spearheaded the public attribution of malicious cyber activities to state-sponsored group APT40 alongside Five Eyes partners – New Zealand, Canada, the US and UK – and Germany, Japan and Korea.
It’s the first time Australia has taken the lead on a cyber advisory and the first time Japan and Korea have joined the nation in attribution.
The hacking group stole hundreds of usernames and passport words from one Australian entity in April 2022. The attribution was due to the diligence of the Australian Signals Directorate in uncovering the threat, the defence minister, Richard Marles, said.
In our current strategic circumstances, these attributions are increasingly important tools in deterring malicious cyber activity.
Australia would continue to engage with China without compromising on national security or interests, the foreign minister, Penny Wong, said.
The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, said cyber intrusions from foreign governments were “one of the most significant threats we face”.
Key events
Andrew Messenger
High-profile Queensland cult murder case delayed again
The Queensland trial of 14 members of the Saints religious group for allegedly causing the death of 8-year-old member Elizabeth Struhs has been delayed again.
The supreme court hearing was due to begin this afternoon after being delayed from Monday to allow the court to be modified. But it has been delayed until Wednesday this morning.
The group is expected to be arraigned on Wednesday afternoon, after a lengthy meeting in a court room to discuss the case in private.
Her father, Jason Richard Struhs, and religious leader Brendan Stevens, face charges of murder for allegedly denying the diabetic young girl insulin. Her mother, Kerrie Elizabeth Struhs has been charged with manslaughter, alongside 11 other defendants.
They allegedly attempted to use prayer to preserve the life of the 8-year-old. Prosecutors claim they knew their actions would likely cause her death.
Earlier, the shadow minister for Indigenous Australians, Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, said boarding facilities were needed in Alice Springs as one measure going forward.
Catherine Liddle weighed in on that suggestion:
I don’t necessarily know if it is boarding facilities, but certainly, people need safe places to call home. Now, if that means there’s an interim measure, then that’s a good thing.
But you’ve always got to be careful with boarding facilities, particularly when talking about Aboriginal children, because then you start erring into concepts like residential care, and that’s a whole different story.
‘No evidence that snap curfews work’, says SNAICC CEO
Catherine Liddle argued there is “no evidence that snap curfews like this work”.
She said what was happening in Alice Springs now, with the snap three-day lockdown, was different to what occurred in April – “a genuine circuit breaker”.
I do understand the need for, when we need to have short-term responses, but this isn’t it. Having curfews in a tool kit for police to use is not a sensible response … We need to be investing into the solutions.
Now, when we’re talking about children, we know that if you’re investing into early education and care, if you’re investing into juvenile diversion activities, we see significant differences in the outcomes for children and the likelihood of children coming into contact with the criminal justice system. You increase punitive measures, what you get is more crime. That is what the trends show.
Alice Springs curfew and circuit breaker terms getting mixed up, says Catherine Liddle
Catherine Liddle, the CEO of SNAICC – the national voice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children – has been speaking with ABC News Breakfast about the Alice Springs curfew.
Asked whether the snap curfew would serve as a “circuit breaker”, Liddle said the terms were getting mixed up:
A circuit breaker is significantly different to a curfew. Now, in April, we had a circuit breaker and that was an absolutely extraordinary collision of events where children were at serious risk of serious harm.
She said that during that circuit breaker, there were support workers on the street and efforts were made to ensure families had somewhere to go when they needed help.
And what [police] found during that period of time was that every child that they came into contact with had a family who said, ‘thank you for coming, let’s talk to you about what we need to do to help our children.’ That was the responses that needed to be invested in.
China-backed hacker group unmasked by Australia and allies
A cyber group acting on behalf of China’s powerful minister of state security has been blamed for espionage and hacks targeting the Australian government and private sector networks, AAP reports.
The Australian government has spearheaded the public attribution of malicious cyber activities to state-sponsored group APT40 alongside Five Eyes partners – New Zealand, Canada, the US and UK – and Germany, Japan and Korea.
It’s the first time Australia has taken the lead on a cyber advisory and the first time Japan and Korea have joined the nation in attribution.
The hacking group stole hundreds of usernames and passport words from one Australian entity in April 2022. The attribution was due to the diligence of the Australian Signals Directorate in uncovering the threat, the defence minister, Richard Marles, said.
In our current strategic circumstances, these attributions are increasingly important tools in deterring malicious cyber activity.
Australia would continue to engage with China without compromising on national security or interests, the foreign minister, Penny Wong, said.
The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, said cyber intrusions from foreign governments were “one of the most significant threats we face”.
Burney repeats call for politics to be left out of Alice Springs curfew discussions
The minister for Indigenous Australians, Linda Burney, has been making the rounds this morning, also speaking with ABC News Breakfast about the Alice Springs curfew.
She said the three-day curfew is “important, but it’s not the be-all and end-all” and echoed earlier comments:
You can’t arrest your way out of this. The judicial system is not the answer, but the community working with government is the answer. And that’s very much the way in which I’m pursuing the issues.
Burney also repeated earlier calls for politics to be left out of the conversation around Alice Springs:
I always try to put myself into the shoes of people involved in the situation. And if you imagine you’re a 15-year-old Aboriginal person in Alice Springs living in shocking conditions where the poverty is absolutely grinding and you can’t see a future, probably with FASD, then they’re the shoes that we need to stand in. I think the really important thing is to take the politics out of this.
Everyone’s views are important, everyone’s views should be listened to, but we cannot get away from the poverty, the deprivation, the shocking living conditions and, quite frankly, young people not being able to see a future.
Push to expedite common antidepressant shipments amid shortages
Shortages of a common antidepressant have resulted in fears of stockpiling as the medical regulator works with manufacturers to expedite shipments, AAP reports.
Duloxetine is used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder and cannot be stopped suddenly.
The shortages from multiple suppliers have been blamed on an increase in demand and manufacturing issues. Expected supply dates range from mid-2024 to May 2025.
Shortages of some brands are only expected for a couple of months in the middle of this year, while others date back to September and December 2023.
“Medicine shortages are not unique to Australia,” a Therapeutic Goods Administration spokesperson told AAP in a statement.
They occur for many reasons and sometimes cannot be avoided – nevertheless, managing medicine supply is a priority for the Australian government and the TGA recognises the importance of reliable antidepressant supply.
While we are not responsible for co-ordinating the supply of medicines, the TGA takes shortages very seriously and works closely with sponsors to help minimise the effects on patients.
Patients should speak with their doctors about treatment options while supply is disrupted, the spokesperson said.
Jacinta Nampijinpa Price on Alice Springs curfew: ‘Underlying problems aren’t fixed through a curfew’
The shadow minister for Indigenous Australians, Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, spoke with ABC News Breakfast earlier this morning from Alice Springs, amid the snap three-day curfew.
Echoing what she said yesterday, the senator said that curfews are “really only temporary measures.”
A lot of the kids that are on our streets – I think I’ve been arguing for some time now that we need boarding facilities built for these kids. The Yipirinya School, the Elders from that school, have been calling for boarding facilities so that they can assist in the lives of these kids. These kids come from town camps and they’re some of our most marginalised. We need to look at the problem starting with them before they head down the road toward incarceration and the sorts of behaviour we’re seeing carried out on our streets.
Does she think the curfew will be extended?
I think it will probably be longer than three days. And if it is just three days, I have no doubt there’ll be another snap curfew, because the underlying problems aren’t fixed through a curfew.
Transmission line issue cuts power to about 25,000 customers in northern NSW
Peter Hannam
Energy issues are pretty prominent of late, not least issues about potential gas shortages in southern Australia. Cold weather bumps up gas usage for heating and, if winds are light, more gas is burnt for power generation – hence the strain on supplies.
Anyway, twitchy energy market players would have received a bit of a surprise last night when the market operator (Aemo) issued an alert of load shedding in New South Wales. That came without any of the usual forewarnings, such as so-called Lack of Reserve alerts.
It turns out Aemo had ordered Transgrid to shed 30 megawatts of power to the Lismore area from its big 300kv transmission line in northern NSW at 6.20pm Aest on Monday night. About 24,500 Essential Energy customers didn’t get their essential energy.
Transgrid said they worked closely with Aemo to restore the majority of power by 8.02pm, with the full load restored by 10pm. A Transgrid spokesperson said:
The outage was the result of a network constraint on a transmission line exacerbated by increased customer demand during the night-time peak, and wider network issues outside of Transgrid’s direct control. Load shedding was necessary to ensure the safe operation of the network. Transmission line repairs are being carried out.
Both Transgrid and Essential Energy issued an apology to affected customers.
Seems like the problem is resolved for now. Let’s hope so.
Wong condemns Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities, children’s hospital
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, has denounced Russian missile attacks on several Ukrainian cities – including a children’s hospital – as “abhorrent”.
In a post to X, Wong said:
Russia’s missile attacks on several Ukrainian cities, including a Kyiv children’s hospital are abhorrent. We condemn the targeting of civilian infrastructure, including hospitals. Australia continues to support the people of Ukraine in the face of Russia’s illegal, immoral war.
Durack Fire and Rescue station to Paris Olympics
Firefighters in the outer Brisbane suburb of Durack are getting behind their crewmate Aly Bull, who is gearing up for her third Olympic Games in Paris this month.
In a post to X, the Queensland Fire Department said:
Aly has been putting in the hard yards, working towards podium success in the K-1 and WK2 Canoe Sprint events in between shifts at Durack Station. Best of luck Aly, all of us at QFD will be cheering for you!
Durack ➡️ Paris
Firefighters at Durack Fire and Rescue Station are getting behind their very own crew-mate Aly Bull as she gears up for her third Olympic Games in Paris this month. ✈️
Aly has been putting in the hard yards, working towards podium success in the K-1 and WK2… pic.twitter.com/5c9oVID2mb
— Queensland Fire Department (@QldFireDept) July 8, 2024
Man found dead in Gold Coast
A crime scene has been declared after a man was found deceased on the Gold Coast this morning.
Queensland police said they were called to an address on Nerang Street at Southport around 6am after a man had been found unconscious, and was later declared deceased.
Investigations into the circumstances of the death are currently under way.
Would Labor support the Greens proposed federal truth and justice system if it gets broader support from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders?
Linda Burney said the model was “very judicial” and in her personal view, “it needs to be more of a community-led initiative that brings people together”.
We will look at it very closely but … it’s not about truth telling in this instance, it’s about the model of the commission that’s been put forward.
Will Labor support a federal truth telling body?
Linda Burney was asked about a bill introduced by the Greens last week to establish a federal truth and justice system, like the Makarrata commission proposed in the Uluru statement from the heart.
Will Labor support a federal truth telling body in this term of parliament?
Burney said the Greens advised her in advance they would be putting forward the bill, which has now gone to a committee.
Labor is still very committed to the issues of truth telling and we’re working very closely with states and territories. There’s only one state that doesn’t have a truth or treaty process underfoot and you know, the issue of truth telling is something that I’m seeing right across the country being done and in a variety of ways. It’s not just governments that are responsible for this, it is also communities that are taking it up with gusto.
Burney said in her view, the opposition has played an “absolute spoilers role” in Aboriginal affairs, when asked if they might support such a measure.
It was traditionally a bipartisan issue for many years across the parliament. I don’t feel like it is now. I feel very, very sorry about that.
Burney looking for ‘silver linings’ in outcome of last year’s Voice referendum
Q: This is the first Naidoc week since the voice to parliament referendum failed last October. How are you reflecting on the significance of that referendum this week?
Linda Burney:
The referendum result was heartbreaking. But you know what? There is some real silver linings in it: six and a half million Australians voted yes, we’ve seen the emergence of young Indigenous leadership come out of it, and we also saw very high yes votes in predominantly Aboriginal communities.
So I take those silver linings as really positive outcomes and also … the issue of Aboriginal disparity and disadvantage and the shocking statistics around Aboriginal wellbeing were on the national stage.
