In March this year the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) held their second ASIO Annual Threat Assessment Summit. The main highlight of the event was the emphasis the Director-General put on the current threat landscape. The threat assessment of ASIO has provided some key points outlined below.
Sophisticated Threat Actors
The current trend of cyber-attacks and breaches is ongoing, but threat actors have also been branching out into other areas and have evolved their security and tech knowledge. Organisations both public and private must learn to adapt and out-maneuver these threat actors, as they do not adhere to laws and policies in cyberspace. We have to look past the Hollywood interpretation of hackers and spies.
Remote Work Is The New Normal
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the world in many ways, and the operations of businesses and communities have shifted. Remote work has become the new normal for many organisations, prompting new methods of approach by threat actors and extremist groups.
Extremist Violence
Violent groups such as ISIL and other terrorist groups have been using the aftermath of the bushfires and current effects of the pandemic to spread their agenda globally, drastically increasing the frequency of attacks in the western world. This has seen an increase in both religiously motivated extremist violence and ideologically motivated extremist violence.
Espionage has taken a new form in this age, as intelligence groups have shifted to approach their targets on social and professional platforms, leveraging their connections to conduct their activities.
Monitoring Risks
Although it seems that ASIO has much on their plate, they have been adapting to the new threat environment and monitoring risks in order to mitigate and stop them when needed. Introducing new languages for violent and extremist groups to further gain a better scope on which group to look out for has helped ASIO in detecting violent acts before they take place.
Staying up-to-date and implementing new approaches to security is what we at Agilient are all about. Contact us for more information on how you could stay on top of your security and intelligence.
Author: Saeed Baayoun, Agilient Consultant