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ARTICLE · 04 JULY 2021

Labor introduces new bill to mandate notification of ransomware payments

Gilchrist Connell
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The proposed measures aim to tackle the crisis caused by the increasing frequency and severity of ransomware incidents.

AustraliaTechnology
Nitesh Patel
Nitesh Patel
Linda Zeng
Linda Zeng
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On 21 June 2021, Shadow Assistant Minister for Cyber Security, Tim Watts, introduced the Ransomware Payments Bill 2021 (Bill) to the Federal Parliament, which proposes mandatory notification of ransomware payments by most entities.

The Bill was moved to a second reading on the same day and no proposed amendments have been made. If approved, the Bill will mandate public and private entities (with the exemption of small businesses, sole traders, unincorporated entities and charities) to notify the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) about a ransomware incident and payment as soon as practicable.

The explanatory memorandum to the Bill1 sets out that the information is intended to be used to:

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