Small Business Minister: Optus must “do everything” it can to support affected businesses

Australia’s Small Business Minister has vowed to work with her colleagues to further enhance data privacy protections in the wake of the Optus cyberattack, telling SmartCompany she is “particularly concerned” about the impact of the massive data leak on the nation’s small businesses. 

While Minister Julie Collins didn’t respond directly to the question of whether affected individuals and small business owners should receive financial compensation from institutions when sensitive data is leaked, she said the Albanese government “expects Optus to do everything to support affected customers, including small businesses” in this case. 

“All efforts should be focused on protecting Optus customers and preventing harm,” she added. 

Optus confirmed on Friday that last week’s massive cyberattack did not reach any enterprise customers, however, Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin said small business clients, whose personal and business accounts could be one and the same, could be among the millions of Australians affected. 

Optus has since offered 12 months’ worth of free credit monitoring through Equifax to the most affected current and former customers, but is yet to announce if the company will also provide financial compensation or aid for customers following the attack. 

When asked about what actions her office has taken in response to the cyberattack, Minister Collins said the government “has engaged in an intensive and ongoing way to help shut down the initial attack, and to assess ongoing risks”.

“This has included extensive work by the Australian Signals Directorate, the Australian Cyber Security Centre and the Australian Federal Police, including collaboration with Home Affairs, Communications and Treasury,” she added. 

Collins reiterated the view shared by Cybersecurity Minister Claire O’Neill on Monday that Australia needs “better national laws to manage the immense amount of data collected by companies about Australians and clear consequences for when they do not manage it well”. 

“We are committed to protecting Australians personal information and to strengthening privacy laws through the Privacy Act review,” the Minister told SmartCompany. 

“The Albanese government has already begun work on enhancing data privacy protections, and has also undertaken to facilitate better information sharing during such incidents.

“I know this is crucial for Australia’s small businesses and I will continue working with my colleagues to progress this important work.”