This Month
National Reconstruction Fund pumps $200m into Macquarie Technology
Innovation Minister Tim Ayres says the funding will help to keep Australian data onshore, amid growing concerns over cybersecurity in the AI boom.
ING halts sign-ups to $3.9b super fund after ‘unusual activity’
The banking challenger has quietly stopped customers from joining its nascent superannuation business for more than a week after a spike in suspicious moves.
Energy stocks, gold producers to surge as Iran strikes rattle markets
Analysts have predicted that oil prices could surge by $US20 a barrel when trade opens on Monday after shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz were closed.
February
Google disrupts ‘vast’ global Chinese-linked hacker network
The hacking group spied on 53 organisations around the world and has a history of breaching government organisations for nearly a decade.
Quadrant’s cybersecurity play Bastion inks fourth acquisition
Bastion’s latest acquisition, Astralas, is about expanding its technical reach and deepening its push across the Tasman.
HWLE chief executive partner leaves Australia’s largest law firm
Russell Mailler sudden resignation comes after nearly two years as chief executive and 14 years at the firm.
Westpac executive departures put transformation under scrutiny
Australia’s two largest banks are on the hunt for new chief information officers as the industry plays musical chairs with top tech talent.
NSW crossbench proposes data redaction powers to curb union access
Business groups fear a new law will be misused to allow more access to digital work systems, prompting calls for more safeguards for sensitive information.
A tech exit in reverse: The $3b deal to save the ASX from itself
What looked like a plain vanilla takeover could spark the ASX’s next large cap.
January
His spyware was blacklisted by the US. He’s back with a new start-up
Shalev Hulio’s NSO Group was burnt by Israeli’s hacking-for-hire industry. Amid a shifting political landscape, investors are pouring millions into his new venture.
Hackers steal Victorian students’ personal data in major cyber breach
The Education Department said the hackers gained access to sensitive data through a school’s network but there was no evidence it was released publicly.
PE tests the market for documents storage biz ZircoDATA after a decade
Record Point is pitching ZircoDATA as a defensive, infrastructure-like play with bond-style cashflows and compliance tailwinds.
Private equity-backed ctrl:cyber hits $100m milestone in expansion play
The deal is expected to strengthen ctrl:cyber’s sovereign capability and national footprint, and see its enterprise value punch through $100 million.
UK hacker who ‘barely finished school’ wins visa by breaching DFAT
Jacob Riggs, 36, hacked into the site in less than two hours to show he had the expertise required for a rare permit given only to highly skilled professionals.
December 2025
England is beating Australia at something bigger than the Ashes
We must follow the UK’s lead by equipping young people with the skills to navigate complex modern finance, digital risks and sophisticated systems like superannuation.
Turnbull-backed firm that fights AI bots is now worth $300m
Kasada has pulled off a fresh funding round, led by a private equity giant, as it is increasingly used by organisations keen to avoid data scraping.
November 2025
Millions paid to business run by spy chief’s husband under scrutiny
Contracts awarded to a company where the Australian Signals Directorate director-general’s spouse was a senior manager have been under external investigation.
China’s 6G technology a ‘significant national security risk’
Australia must not be seduced by the promises of advancements in mobile networks and quantum computing with China, a cybersecurity strategist says.
Aussies sell their tech company to US giant for $5b
The sale of the tech entrepreneurs’ software company to cybersecurity giant Palo Alto Networks is one of the biggest deals of the year.
Cloudflare resolves global outage that hit ChatGPT, X
The cause of the outage was a configuration file that is automatically generated to manage threat traffic, Jackie Dutton, a Cloudflare spokesperson said.
