MEDIA RELEASE - OPTUS DATA BREACH: BILL SHORTEN DATA BREACH FAILURE LEAVES VULNERABLE AUSTRALIANS BEHIND

MEDIA RELEASE

16 November 2022

OPTUS DATA BREACH: BILL SHORTEN DATA BREACH FAILURE LEAVES VULNERABLE AUSTRALIANS BEHIND

The Albanese Labor Government is still refusing to contact Australians impacted by the Optus data breach, despite sensitive taxpayer information being used in a highly publicised government data audit, Shadow Minister for Government Services, Paul Fletcher MP, said today.

“It was revealed in Senate Estimates that the Albanese government has no plans to notify customers about the conclusion of an audit into whether their sensitive Medicare data had been hijacked as part of the Optus data breach, a fact Minister Shorten didn’t bother telling Australians,” Mr Fletcher said.

“This revelation comes despite Services Australia confirming there had been in uptick in calls to the Scams and Identity Theft Help Desk around the time of the Optus breach.

“In the face of these concerning data breaches, these admissions show that the Albanese government is not giving Australians the support they deserve at this distressing time.

“After the breach, Mr Shorten was very quick to front the media and issue blustery press releases demanding that Optus “handover customer data,” but the moment he got it, he went missing in action.

“Instead of being focused on protecting Australians and their data, Mr Shorten reverted back to his time as a union official, picking fights and pointing fingers.

“Last financial year, there were 1.2 billion online transactions through Services Australia so it’s very important Australians can continue to have confidence in this key agency.

“I reiterate my call for Mr Shorten to instruct Services Australia to proactively reach out to affected customers and reassure them of their data security.

“The government should be doing everything it can to assure Australians regarding serious breaches of their privacy.

“The approach of not providing even a baseline level of customer service support for Australians is inexplicable,” Mr Fletcher said.

ENDS

Further information: Jack Abadee 0403 440 099