Home affairs department orders all federal government agencies to conduct review of ‘legacy technology’ amid fallout from AI agent hacks <ul><li>Get our <a href=”https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters?CMP=cvau_sfl”>breaking news email, <a href=”https://app.adjust.com/w4u7jx3″>free app or <a href=”https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/series/full-story?CMP=cvau_sfl”>daily news podcast</li></ul>The Australian government faces significant “tech debt” that could bring a big bill for taxpayers after the <a href=”https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/sep/24/openai-agent-hacked-medicare-australia-what-we-know-so-far-ntwnfb”>OpenAI Medicare breach, as government agencies will need to fortify their defences against future attacks by AI agents.This week, the home affairs department ordered all federal government agencies to conduct a “legacy technology stocktake” that requires a plan for each agency to “reduce legacy technology systems” to a level within the agency’s risk tolerance and appetite, <a href=”https://www.protectivesecurity.gov.au/system/files/2026-09/pspf-direction-002-2026_0.pdf”>the direction stated. <a href=”https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/oct/03/openais-medicare-attack-has-exposed-australias-tech-debt-fixing-it-could-bring-a-big-bill-for-taxpayers”>Continue reading…
First seen on theguardian.com
Jump to article: www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/oct/03/openais-medicare-attack-has-exposed-australias-tech-debt-fixing-it-could-bring-a-big-bill-for-taxpayers
![]()

