CANBERRA: Organised crime is targeting more Australians than ever before and becoming more sophisticated, resilient and dangerous, the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) has found.
The ACC’s latest report, described as the most comprehensive profile of organised crime in the country, has found crime syndicates are spreading their wings away from traditional markets such as the drug trade.
Instead, they are turning to terrorist groups and state-of-the-art technology to exert their influence around the globe, and are becoming better at concealing the proceeds of crime through legitimate markets such as real estate.
In the two years since the last ACC profile on organised crime the commission said organised crime has evolved, becoming more entrenched in our lives.
The ACC’s chief executive officer Chris Dawson said the crime markets organised criminals infiltrate had become much broader.
“The threats to Australia set out within this report that we’re releasing today, Organised Crime in Australia 2015, does show that while organised crime remains involved in lucrative and some traditional crime markets, such as illegal drugs, its reach today is increasingly diverse,” Mr Dawson said.
Organised crime can involve identity fraud, cybercrime, drug syndicates, the illegal firearms trade, and it is continuing to expand its reach.
Mr Dawson said millions of Australians were becoming victims, with Australians standing to lose more than $930 million due to cybercrime this year.
“Whether it’s the knock-on effect of illicit drug use and that impact on our families and communities, the significant financial loss that can occur through the loss of your finance or your identity through the internet, that can be affected through theft, through cybercriminals, organised crime does impact on all of us,” he said.
The report found that the illegal drug trade in Australia was now worth an estimated $8.2 billion a year. In the past year, more than 5 million Australians were targeted by cybercriminals.
Mr Dawson said as crime syndicates continued to take advantage of new technology, the problem was likely to get worse.
“There are 12.4 million internet subscribers in Australia, and over 20 million people have mobile data devices that they’re using with a data connection, so the need for us to keep safe online behaviour is more crucial for us than ever before,” he said.
