Australia's cyber agency says AI is making scams faster and harder to spot, and costs per business are rising. Here is what it means for your passwords and updates.
Australians filed a cybercrime report about every six minutes over the past year, and the country's cyber agency says artificial intelligence is making the attacks behind those reports faster and more convincing. The finding comes from the ASD Cyber Threat Report 2025-26, the seventh annual review from the Australian Signals Directorate's Australian Cyber Security Centre.
In the year to mid-2026, the agency received more than 82,000 cybercrime reports. It responded to over 1,500 cyber security incidents, up more than 20% on the year before. It also sent more than 4,400 warnings of possibly malicious activity, almost 80% more than the prior year.
The agency makes one clear point. AI has not created new kinds of threats. It has sped up and sharpened existing ones, especially social engineering, which means tricking people into giving up access or money.
The window to fix security holes is also shrinking. Most flaws are exploited within two weeks of a fix being released, and some within 48 hours. The agency expects AI tools to shorten that over the next 12 months.
The average self-reported cost of cybercrime per business report rose 16% to $93,500. For medium-sized businesses, it rose 45% to $141,300. For individuals, the average stayed at $33,000. Identity fraud remained the most reported cybercrime, though reports fell 18%.
Data breaches made up 98 incidents, a 66% increase. Ransomware incidents held steady at 139, but the most serious ones rose from 16 to 24. Health care, professional and technical services, and manufacturing were hit hardest.
Stolen logins are a major way in. Phishing appeared in 39% of incidents. Government survey research cited in the report found that 55% of Australians reuse passwords across several accounts. One stolen password can then open many doors.
Suspicious activity can be reported at cyber.gov.au or through the Australian Cyber Security Hotline on 1300 CYBER1 (1300 292 371).
Use a different password for each account, turn on passkeys or two-step login, and install updates quickly, because attackers now move fast.
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