Australia’s Cyber ​​Attacks Hit TV Networks and Parliament Science & Tech News

A cyber attack disrupted Channel Nine’s live broadcasts from Sydney, the TV company confirmed, and at the same time an attack caused Parliament’s e-mail system to go offline.

As a result of the attack, the Weekend Today newscast did not air Sunday morning nor the 5pm newscast, although the future program is expected to air as usual.

Although the nature of the attack has not yet been confirmed, Channel Nine said it was investigating whether it was “criminally sabotaging the work of a foreign nation.”

At the same time, the country’s deputy defense minister Andrew Hastie told News.com.au that the government was forced to block access to IT and email in the parliament building in order to protect itself from a cyber attack by an external provider.

“This is a timely reminder that Australians cannot be complacent about their cybersecurity,” Hastie said.

“Cybersecurity is a team effort and a shared responsibility. It is important that Australian companies and organizations are aware of this threat and take the necessary steps to ensure our digital sovereignty.”

Nine Entertainment, the station’s parent company, which also owns the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age newspapers, confirmed it was an attack, but it is unclear whether the incidents are interrelated.

In its statement, Channel Nine said, “A cyber attack on our systems disrupted the live broadcast today. However, we have processes in place to ensure we can resume our normal broadcast schedule.”

The country’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison made this claim last June Australia was the target of a “sophisticated” cyber attack from a nameless foreign state.

At the time, Morrison said the attacks were directed against all levels of government – as well as against political organizations, key service providers and operators of other critical infrastructure.