News

Martian Logic potential data breach

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is aware of a data security incident impacting Martian Logic. 

Martian Logic has contacted its clients and is supporting them with taking appropriate steps to notify individuals, where required.

Martian Logic’s investigation into the incident has found the personal information of some past, present, and/or potential employees may have been compromised, including Australian passport numbers and images of Australian passports.    

Their investigation found that the incident is the result of a human coding error and is not related to a cyber-attack. There is no evidence of a breach of their systems, nor any unexplained activity on their network.   

Affected Australian passports are still safe to use for international travel. Your passport number cannot be used to obtain a new passport. Robust controls are used to protect passports from identity takeover, including sophisticated facial-recognition technology. 

See our page on protecting against scams and identity theft for more advice on how to safeguard your personal information.  

You can also seek help from IDCARE (link is external), a not-for-profit organisation that specialises in providing advice and support to Australians on how to respond to identity theft.    

More advice on what you can do to protect yourself and your family from cyber security incidents is available on the Australian Cyber Security Centre’s (ACSC) webpage at: www.cyber.gov.au (link is external).

Article Date:
27 August 2024

Northern Minerals Limited data breach

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is aware of a cyber incident impacting Northern Minerals Limited. 

Northern Minerals Limited's investigation into the cyber incident has found the personal details of some of its current and former employees were compromised, including copies of Australian and foreign passports.    

Northern Minerals Limited is contacting impacted individuals directly and continues to investigate the matter to determine the full extent of the cyber‑attack.    

Affected Australian passports are still safe to use for international travel. Your passport number cannot be used to obtain a new passport. Robust controls are used to protect passports from identity takeover, including sophisticated facial-recognition technology.  

See our page on protecting against scams and identity theft for more advice on how to safeguard your personal information.  

You can also seek help from IDCARE (link is external), a not-for-profit organisation that specialises in providing advice and support to Australians on how to respond to identity theft.     

More advice on what you can do to protect yourself and your family from cyber security incidents is available on the Australian Cyber Security Centre’s (ACSC) webpage at: www.cyber.gov.au (link is external).  

If you’re a foreign passport holder whose personal details have been compromised, you should contact the government that issued your passport for further advice about what to do.  Please refer to DFAT’s list of foreign government representatives (link is external) based in Australia.  

Article Date:
06 August 2024

My passport was sent but hasn’t arrived

It happens very rarely, but sometimes passports go missing in the mail.

If your passport goes missing in the mail, you must do one of the following:

To be eligible for a free replacement passport, you must contact us within 60 days from when we mailed you the passport.

Article Date:
05 August 2024

Password security tips

Hackers using bots can crack about 60% of passwords in less than 60 minutes, and 45% in less than 60 seconds.

To protect your personal information, we’ve introduced multi-factor authentication (MFA) on all AusPassport accounts. MFA makes it harder for cybercriminals to take over your account as it adds an extra layer of protection. Even if your password is guessed or stolen, your account can’t be accessed without a unique authentication code from your email or phone number.

We also strongly recommend you follow these general password security tips:

  • change your password to a strong, unique passphrase that uses 4 or more random words*
  • use a password that’s easy for you to remember but hard for others to guess
  • use a password manager
  • don’t re-use the same password across multiple online accounts
  • don’t save passwords in your web browser
  • don’t share your password with anyone
  • don’t let anyone see your screen if you use the ‘show password’ option.

* You can find the specific AusPassport account password requirements on our website.

You can test the strength of your password and whether it’s been involved in a breach or leak by visiting the passwords page (link is external) on the NSW Government website.

Article Date:
31 July 2024

Passport lost or stolen? Here's what to do.

You should report passport theft as soon as possible to protect your identity. Contact us on 131 232, or if you’re overseas contact your nearest Australian diplomatic or consular mission (link is external)

When you tell us your passport has been lost or stolen, we cancel it immediately and we tell border authorities in Australia and overseas. This helps prevent identity criminals from misusing your passport. 

You should also report any theft to the Australian police and to the local police if you’re overseas.

Find more information about lost or stolen passports on our website.

Article Date:
22 July 2024