Australians are being warned to keep a close eye on their bank accounts for suspicious activity after billionaire Clive Palmer’s political ventures were targeted by cybercriminals.
The United Australia Party (UAP) and Trumpet of Patriots (TOP), both linked to Palmer, fell victim to a ransomware breach on June 23, exposing vast amounts of personal data, including bank details, identity documents, and confidential correspondence.
In a statement to supporters, TOP revealed that “unauthorized access” was detected on their servers, and that “years” worth of sensitive documents have been stolen.
TOP admitted they couldn’t determine the full extent of the damage or identify all those affected, and are urging people who have ever contacted or supported the UAP or Trumpet of Patriots to take precautionary steps.
This includes changing passwords, enabling multi-factor authentication, and monitoring bank accounts for suspicious activity.
Both the UAP and TOP have courted controversy in the past for their policy stances, anti-lockdown campaigns, and populist rhetoric.
Ironically, the party is now urging those impacted to remain on guard against messages sent by political parties.
“Please remain alert especially with email, text messages or phone calls, particularly where the sender or call purports to be from the Political Parties,” the statement read.
The incident has been reported to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) and the Australian Signals Directorate.