‘Cybersecurity incident’: Major Aussie ports locked down after breach rocks ports operator DP World

Major sea ports across Australia were locked down after a ports operator confirmed a “cybersecurity incident” had struck, with chaos expected to continue for days.

Major sea ports around Australia have been shut down by operator DP World following what has been called a “cybersecurity incident”, and are expected to be heavily restricted for days to come.

The container terminal operator made the decision late on Friday night, with access to ports heavily restricted on Saturday at Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Fremantle.

The restrictions are expected to cause chaos across Australia, with imports and exports to be heavily delayed as a result.

Operator DP World decided to shut down its container terminals in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Fremantle. Picture: DP World

“Our teams are working diligently to contain the situation and determine the impact on our systems and data,” DP World Australia said in a statement.

“To safeguard our employees, customers and our networks, we have restricted landside access to our Australian port operations while we continue our investigation.

“This is part of a comprehensive response which includes engaging with cybersecurity experts, actively investigating the incident and notifying the relevant authorities.”

The Australian Federal Police are also investigating, with ports expected to remain closed for several days, disrupting the movement of goods.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said the federal government was aware of the attack and receiving regular briefings, with National Cybersecurity Coordinator Darren Goldie to lead the operation.

In a statement shared to X, Mr Goldie said the interruption was “likely to continue for a couple of days and will impact the movement of goods into and out of the country”.

“The Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) is engaged with DP World Australia and is providing technical advice and assistance,” he said.

“The Australian Federal Police has commenced investigations into the incident.”

Authorities are expected to meet again on Sunday.

They made the decision late Friday night following a "cybersecurity incident". Picture: DP World

The hack follows another cybersecurity incident at Melbourne cryptocurrency exchange Coinspot on Thursday, in which more than $2m was taken from accounts.

Another data breach in September caused the information of nearly 200,000 Pizza Hut customers to be leaked.

Bookstore chain Dymocks also disclosed a data breach, in which customer data “may have been compromised,” also took place in September.

DP World is a Dubai-based logistics company which operates cargo and port terminal services both in Australia and internationally.

The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) recently voted on industrial action, extending their 24-hour rolling strike notice until November 20.

There’s no suggestion the cybersecurity incident and the union actions are linked.