Michael Read
Chinese hackers are exploiting the rise of remote work by hijacking employees’ home routers and smart devices to breach corporate systems and create a sprawling network of infected gadgets.
The Australian Signals Directorate on Tuesday warned that state-sponsored cyber actors posed a serious threat to the nation, as it revealed the average loss per cybercrime against big business more than tripled to $202,700 in 2024-25.
State-sponsored Chinese hackers who compromise home Wi-Fi routers can then get inside other devices and potentially infiltrate corporate networks. Tim Beor
“State-sponsored cyber actors have also compromised home devices connected to the internet, such as home routers, to create botnets that support further targeting around the globe,” ASD said in its annual cyber threat report for 2024-25.
ASD’s Australian Cyber Security Centre responded to 1200 incidents in 2024-25. The figure was an 11 per cent increase from the previous year and included two attacks classified as an extensive compromise of either an unnamed federal government agency or a piece of critical infrastructure.
ASD warned that Chinese-linked hackers were increasingly targeting so-called “edge devices” like home internet routers, VPNs and firewalls to gain access to other connected devices like smart appliances, phones, consoles and computers.
Edge devices connect to a private network, such as at home or work, through an untrusted network like the internet.
“Edge devices are attractive targets for malicious cyber actors because internet-facing vulnerabilities in edge devices are common, and they are often difficult for network owners to monitor or configure securely,” ASD said.
“These vulnerabilities provide malicious cyber actors with a great chance of successfully compromising a network.
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