Chinese Hackers Salt Typhoon Probe Australian Infrastructure, Spy Chief Warns of Cyber Sabotage Risks
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Key Takeaways
- Official warning: Australia's spy chief said that Chinese state-sponsored hackers are actively probing telecommunications networks and critical infrastructure.
- Economic impact: Espionage activities are estimated to have cost the Australian economy A$12.5 billion in the last year alone.
- Named hackers: The hacking groups Salt Typhoon and Volt Typhoon, linked to the Chinese government and military, were mentioned as cyberspies.
The director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), Mike Burgess, has issued a stark warning regarding Chinese hackers targeting Australia. Speaking at a business conference, Burgess stated that threat actors linked to the Chinese government have been actively probing the nation's critical infrastructure.
Salt Typhoon and Volt Typhoon Groups Implicated
Burgess specifically named the hacking groups Salt Typhoon and Volt Typhoon as being responsible for cyberspionage, which he named "hackers working for Chinese government intelligence and their military," Reuters has reported.
"Both groups were involved in the theft of sensitive information, but the real danger was the threat of sabotage - disruption to critical infrastructure,” Burgess said, cited by the BBC. "And they have been probing our telecommunication networks here in Australia, too."
He noted that Salt Typhoon, also referred to as GhostEmperor, FamousSparrow, Earth Estries, and UNC2286, which has already penetrated U.S. telecommunications systems, has been observed probing Australian telecommunications networks.
Meanwhile, the ASIO director said Volt Typhoon has also focused on compromising U.S. critical infrastructure with the clear intent to enable future disruption, pre-positioning for potential sabotage.
The financial toll of these operations is already substantial, with espionage costing the country an estimated AU $12.5 billion (roughly $8.1 billion) last year, including A$2 billion in lost intellectual property and trade secrets.
Potential Impact on National Security
Burgess warned that a successful attack could disrupt telecommunications, with cascading effects on banking, transport, and even essential services such as water and power supplies.
He emphasized that these scenarios are not hypothetical. The threat extends beyond public services to include crippling a commercial competitor or instigating panic during a national event, such as an election.
These actors are "highly sophisticated, using top-notch tradecraft to find your networks, test for vulnerabilities, knock on digital doors and check the digital locks", Burgess said. "They actively and aggressively map your systems, and seek to maintain persistent undetected access that enables them to conduct sabotage at a time and moment of their choosing."
This underscores the strategic threat posed by state-sponsored cyber operations against Australia's national security. An October Australian cyber threat report noted that state-sponsored actors remain a threat in 2025.
July reports noted that the U.S. National Guard was hacked by Salt Typhoon, which maintained access for almost one year. Earlier this year, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned a hacker and a Sichuan company linked to Salt Typhoon AT&T and Verizon cyberattacks.
This month, a New York fiber laser expert was convicted of stealing U.S. trade secrets for China.
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