There are warnings that foreign governments are targeting Australians in their own homes.
And cyber security experts have said that the smartphones we carry in our pockets are becoming even juicier targets for authoritarian regimes.
Last week, home affairs minister Clare O’Neill said foreign interference was now a bigger domestic threat than terrorism.
“This is an urgent priority of the government. Our security agencies are really focused on this problem,” the minister told Channel 9’s 60 Minutes.
A troubling incident that has come to light allegedly involved Iranian foreign agents engaging in the stalking and harassment of Australian citizens.
Ongoing efforts by Iran to suppress dissent against its government and laws have intensified over the past year, which some believe was partly triggered by the arrest and death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini for wearing an improper hijab.
Protests sprung up all over the world in response to Ms Amini’s brutal demise at the hands of authorities in Iran, calling for an end to oppressive laws against women.
Supporters of Iran have responded by increasing the intensity of their online campaign to stop dissent against the Iranian regime both at home and abroad.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has now shifted its focus to intimidating anyone who speaks openly against the nation’s authoritarian regime.
Australian cyber security expert Katherine Mansted spoke to news.com.au and warned of the complexity of the schemes employed by foreign nations in Australia.
“Our government has been warning us for years now of the risks of foreign interference and cyber attacks,” she said.
“The reason Australia has unprecedented levels of foreign interference comes from a couple of factors. One is that technology has changed. All of us carry a surveillance device in our pockets, we all have very significant digital footprints and a lot of us have had significant data leaked.
“The opportunity for foreign governments to reach into our digital lives is far greater than it’s ever been.”
Ms Mansted, who is the executive director of Cyber Intelligence at CyberCX, said the globe is “seeing a resurgence of authoritarian regimes” that pose risks to everyday citizens.
She identified four major players that the Australian government is focused on: China, Russia, North Korea and Iran.
“Iran has long invested in very sophisticated cyber hacking tools and it has invested in a cadre of cyber spies that it uses to advance its strategic objectives and bolster the power of the regime,” she said.
“They believe that they have the right to reach into our democracy, particularly to harass, control and intimidate migrants or those who are perceived dissidents.
“Previously, authoritarian governments have done that domestically by controlling and surveilling their populations, but advancements in technology have really facilitated their ability to do that at scale. They have a reach we have never seen before.”
One victim, Australian citizen Tina Kordrostami, claims she was stalked and intimidated by Iranian foreign operatives online. In the 25 years following her family fleeing Iran, Ms Kordrostami has been a vocal advocate for human rights despite receiving both in-person and online threats.
She detailed one particularly frightening moment when she found out she was being stalked at a petrol station by a man speaking Persian.
“I noticed that there was a big white van behind me who was keeping very close to my car and his driving was out of the ordinary,” Ms Kordrostami said on 60 Minutes.
“When I parked up at a service station, the man driving the van walked up to my car and started talking to me in Persian. I told him to leave me alone and he said, ‘it doesn’t matter anyway because I know where you live’”.
Ms Kordrostami said she is rarely able to post something online without receiving ominous threats.
“Every time I post anything, and it immediately gets shared within Iran, that’s where I start seeing threats such as the Islamic Republic being closer to me than I think,” she said.
Ms Mansted said the threat of foreign cyber interferences vary from person to person. For some, it may be a stolen credit card or passport. But for others, the consequences can be far worse.
“Stories of stalking or harassment by foreign governments on Australian citizens really puts a sharpened point to recent data breaches,” she said.
“In the last 12 months, we’ve had some of the most significant data breaches in Australia’s history.
“For some people, it’s just a headache to get identity documents reissued, or they might have to speak to their bank to get credit monitoring to make sure they don’t have fraud committed against them.
“But for some people, particularly vulnerable people who are perceived by foreign governments to be persons of interest, it can potentially be a really serious concern to their health and safety.
“A piece of data as innocuous as your address or phone number can facilitate disturbing behaviour from these increasingly aggressive and emboldened foreign governments.”
Australian researcher Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert, who was falsely accused of espionage during a research trip to Iran, explained her similar experience of being harassed even after being released from prison.
She spent 804 days in prison in Iran between 2018 and 2020.
“They have no respect for human rights, they have no respect for the rule of law, for democratic principles,” Ms Moore-Gilbert said.
“They will kill, will rape, will pillage, will violate human rights to the extent that they get what they want.
“It‘s extraordinarily concerning to think that the IRGC are here on the ground in Australia, or in cyberspace, monitoring what Australian citizens are up to here in our own country.”
Australian politicians, including federal Senator Claire Chandler, are concerned about the extent of the Iranian regime‘s presence and interference in the country.
“We wouldn‘t accept it from Australians here undertaking that sort of activity against fellow Australians. So why should we accept it when it‘s being undertaken by foreign regimes?”
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