Malicious sites emerge in Australia following global outage
Cyber Security Minister Clare O’Neil cautioned against potential scams and phishing attempts.
Australia’s cyber intelligence agency warned on Saturday about the release of ‘malicious websites and unofficial code’ online, claiming to aid recovery from Friday’s global digital outage. The outage, caused by a botched software update from CrowdStrike, impacted various sectors, including media, retailers, banks, and airlines.
The Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) urged consumers to obtain technical information and updates exclusively from official CrowdStrike sources to avoid falling victim to scams. Cyber Security Minister Clare O’Neil also cautioned Australians to be vigilant against potential scams and phishing attempts.
The outage affected the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, causing temporary disruptions in PayID payments, which were later resolved. National airline Qantas and Sydney airport experienced delays but maintained operations. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed that critical infrastructure, government services, and emergency phone systems were unaffected.
CrowdStrike, a major cybersecurity provider with nearly 30.000 global subscribers, previously reached a market cap of about $83 billion. Despite the widespread disruption, the swift response helped mitigate further issues and ensured a quick recovery.
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