ASIO boss warns foreign espionage in Australia is now worse than during the Cold War.
A Chinese national and Australian permanent resident has been arrested and charged after allegedly spying on a Canberra-based Buddhist group on behalf of China’s Public Security Bureau.
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On today’s episode of The Briefing, we sat down with intelligence expert Chris Taylor about why foreign threats are on the rise and why we need to be careful about the information we share, especially online.
Taylor says while the case may seem surprising, it reflects a growing trend of authoritarian regimes targeting diaspora communities in Australia.
“There’s a whole range of things that foreign intelligence services are up to and after… for some authoritarian regimes, regime security is an absolute priority,” he said.
According to the AFP, the individual was allegedly gathering information about the activities of the Buddhist group and its members.
Taylor explained that such espionage doesn’t always involve classified secrets, but any information that gives a foreign government an advantage.
“It can be trade secrets, military capability, or even protest activity,” Taylor said.
The arrest came just days after ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess warned that espionage and foreign interference in Australia are at unprecedented levels.
“It’s not just the subject of movies and books… it’s a real thing,” Taylor added.
As espionage threats grow, experts say it is more important than ever for Australians to consider what’s valuable and vulnerable in their workplaces and personal lives.
“We don’t need to be paranoid, but we do need to be prudent and aware of what we share, especially on platforms like LinkedIn.”
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