Microsoft report ranks Australia third for North Korean attacks

• North Korea targets Australia in 5% of its cyber operations, placing the country third globally for regime activity.
• Australian entities account for 1.5% of overall foreign threat activity, trailing major conflict zones such as Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan.
• North Korean actors use artificial intelligence to accelerate operations, steal cryptocurrency, and secure remote IT employment in foreign businesses.

Australia has emerged as the third primary target for North Korean state-sponsored hackers, accounting for 5% of their total global attacks, according to a report by Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT).

The figures place Australia behind the United States at 25.5% of overall threat activity, while local organisations accounted for 1.5% of total foreign threat activity.

“North Korean state actors have innovated their tradecraft, increased their use of AI, and scaled infrastructure to accelerate operations and conduct more persistent and adaptive campaigns,” said Microsoft.

Microsoft tracked 27 state-backed foreign threat operations targeting Australian entities as artificial intelligence tools created new digital vulnerabilities.

North Korea stated that it relies on cyber activities to generate revenue, including cryptocurrency theft and placing covert remote tech workers in Western enterprises.

Following the release of the report, the Microsoft share price was up at US$512.80.

CyberCX previously stated that several Australian companies had inadvertently hired North Korean IT contractors.