85% of Australians will complete the census online. Here’s how to avoid potential scams
People still remember the 2016 #CensusFail. So how safe is the 2026 census?
The 2016 Australian census saw an online outage that left many citizens distrustful of the system. Cyber security has since improved, with 85% of Australians expected to complete the next census online on August 11, 2026. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has faced cyber security challenges, including distributed denial-of-service attacks, but has implemented significant improvements, repelling nearly 1 billion attempted cyber attacks and blocking over 130,000 malicious internet addresses in the decade since.
The latest cyber security audit found the ABS needs to address key vulnerabilities and improve security architecture, with the ABS responding that it has already implemented two key recommendations. The biggest cyber risk may not be the census website itself but phishing scams, where cyber criminals impersonate the ABS through fake emails, texts, and websites to steal personal information.
To stay safe, Australians should complete the census through official channels, double-check web addresses, avoid clicking suspicious links, and remain wary of misinformation, such as prizes or requests for personal information.
Written by urgent.news from The Conversation AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
