One third of Australian households are victims of cybercrime – report

Rakshnna Pattabiraman

17th Oct 2022

Following multiple cyber breaches across telecom networks, new research has found one in three Australian consumer households may have had their personal information stolen by criminals.

Information security advisory group ISACA conducted a global study surveying 3000 consumers across Australia, the US, the UK and India.

The study has revealed that customers’ digital trust has been impacted and compromised in the aftermath of cybercrime with one in two consumers acknowledging that they might be a target for fraud, scam or identity theft.

Likewise, one in four consumers has also severed ties with companies from where their personalised identifiable information data were stolen.

Jo Stewart-Rattray of ISACA said digital trust among professionals and consumers has been waning rapidly since 2019.

“It also raises concerns around the knock-on effect this breach has on the wider business community and government, considering the enormous resources and costs involved to manage the aftermath of such a significant cyber-attack.”

Additionally, the report pointed out that about 58 per cent of Australian consumers surveyed said they would be confident doing business with a company if they hired certified cybersecurity professionals while 61 per cent said companies should be “independently graded” on data security practices with scores made available to the public.