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Almost half of Australians experience cyber crime, study finds

Josh Butler

Nearly half of Australians experienced some form of cyber crime last year, with the federal government urging people not to reuse online passwords and make sure they have multi-factor authentication on devices.

Some Australians are getting more confident in identifying online crime, which is leading to focus less on protective behaviours, with a whopping 22% of people experiencing identity crime

The Australian Institute of Criminology said online abuse, identity theft, malware and scams were the most common forms of online crime experienced last year. Their new report, Cybercrime in Australia 2024, was released this morning finding 9.5% of Australians were victims of fraud or online scams.

Another 26.8% experienced online abuse or harassment, 21.9% were victims of identity crime, and 20.6% encountered malware attacks.

“While some types of cybercrime declined compared with 2023, the report found protective behaviours — such as using strong passwords and security updates — remain worryingly low,” said Tony Burke, the minister for home affairs and cybersecurity.

The AIC report found only 50% of people used unique passwords for their online accounts, down from 53% the year before. Only 58% of people used multi factor authentication to login.

“Respondents were more confident in their knowledge of technology in 2024 than in 2023, which may lead them to place less importance on protective behaviours,” the AIC said.

Burke said Australians should take more care.

“Remember these three simple steps to stay safe online – always install the latest software updates, use unique passphrases, and enable multifactor authentication wherever it’s available,” he said.