Albanese government to spend $74m on dedicated national online terrorism centre
A dedicated national center to detect and disrupt online terrorism and violent extremism is to be established, as heartbreaking new evidence was revealed on the second day of the Royal Commission into Anti-Semitism and Social Cohesion.
The Albanian government announced on Tuesday it would spend $74 million over two years to establish the Counter-Terrorism Online Centre, which will be jointly managed by ASIO and AFP.
The government said the center would work in partnership with local and international law enforcement to target online terrorists, especially anyone seeking to manipulate vulnerable young people.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said more young Australians were becoming radicalized online.
“And it happens so fast,” he said.
“We already have centers dedicated to protecting children and tackling cybercrime; establishing a center for online violence, extremism and terrorism is the next logical step in the rapidly evolving threat landscape.”
Mr Burke said the new center extends staff monitoring capabilities into the “chat room”.
“A strengthened online threat capability will provide the AFP and ASIO with the resources they need to target terrorists and violent extremists online,” he said.
Funding for the center is part of an $80 million package for 2026-27 to improve online counter-terrorism capabilities and prevent violent extremism and youth radicalization.
The government has warned that violent extremists are increasingly radicalizing online, including on video game platforms and private chat rooms.
In the last two years, 27 young people, 15 of whom were aged 17 or under, were charged with violent extremist material crimes.
It comes as members of Australia’s Jewish community shared heartbreaking evidence before the Royal Commission into the aftermath of the Bondi Beach terror attack.
St John Ambulance volunteer Joshua Gomperts told the inquest a firefighter pulled out a large hunting knife and told him: “I’ll skin you like my family skinned yours in the camps” during a New Year’s Eve event in 2011.
