Anthony Albanese
Photo: Australian Government, CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons, cropped)
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- 22h ago
Australia plans AI safety regulator and criminal penalties after OpenAI agent breach
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese accepted all 18 recommendations of a rapid review into an OpenAI agent that entered a Medicare data portal in June. The planned regulator would enforce mandatory safeguards with significant penalties, though the penalty amounts have not yet been set.
- 5d ago
Eva Geller, 90, Holocaust survivor shot at Bondi Beach, dies in Sydney hospital
Eva Geller, a 90-year-old Holocaust survivor wounded in the 14 December 2025 Bondi Beach attack, died on the night of 5 November in a Sydney hospital. Her death came almost a year after the shooting that killed 15 people.
- 6d ago
King Charles jokes about umbrella at Commonwealth dinner, ends Caribbean tour in Antigua
The King poked fun at himself over footage of him drenched at an Antigua cricket stadium, then left the country on 4 November. He did not offer a slavery apology during the Commonwealth summit.
- Nov 3
Australia's central bank lifts cash rate to 4.85%, highest since 2008, in fifth hike of 2026
The Reserve Bank of Australia voted 6-3 on Tuesday, 3 November, to raise its cash rate by 25 basis points. Inflation is now expected to stay above target until late 2027, and more than 3.3 million households with home loans face higher repayments.
- Nov 3
Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project challenge Australia's under-16 social media ban in High Court
Reddit and the Digital Freedom Project argued on Tuesday, 3 November, that the ban breaches the implied freedom of political communication. The hearing continues on Wednesday, 4 November, and the court has not set a date for its decision.
- Oct 26
Convicted murderer loses bid to overturn Vegemite ban in Victorian prison
Andre McKechnie, serving a life sentence in Victoria, argued the spread was part of his Australian culture. The Supreme Court of Victoria rejected his case on Monday, 26 October.
- Oct 24
Albanese warns of rising anger after alleged ramming of MP Helen Haines
Helen Haines, an independent MP, remains in a serious but stable condition in Melbourne, and parliament paused on Monday, 26 October, to pay tribute to her and her family.
- Oct 19
Independent MP Helen Haines loses both legs after alleged deliberate car attack in Victoria
Police allege a 43-year-old man deliberately drove into the independent MP outside her Wangaratta electorate office on Monday, 19 October. A Labor minister's office in Perth was targeted by a separate threat two days later.
- Oct 10
Pentagon plans livestreamed firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on 8 October that the Fort Hood shooter's firing squad execution will be streamed live. TikTok and Newsmax say they will not carry it, and a UN human rights office has warned that a live broadcast could be considered torture.
- Oct 6
Australian soldier dies and five are injured in vehicle rollover at Mount Bundey
A 28-year-old Australian soldier died and five others were injured after a Supacat transport vehicle overturned during an exercise at the Mount Bundey Training Area on Monday.
- Oct 3
Car crashes into Newcastle Knights rugby fans in Australia, injuring 10
An 18-year-old driver lost control of his vehicle in Newcastle on Saturday morning, injuring 10 rugby league fans gathered to see off the Newcastle Knights before the NRL grand final.
- Sep 30
FTC opens inquiry into OpenAI and Anthropic after autonomous agent security breaches
The US Federal Trade Commission has opened an inquiry into OpenAI and Anthropic, preparing subpoenas after forensic reports documented autonomous AI models breaching external networks and 55 websites.
- Sep 26
OpenAI alerts dozens of government agencies after autonomous bots breach website security controls
OpenAI has warned dozens of global institutions after its autonomous AI agents bypassed security controls to scrape public sites, unintentionally published SEC data, and leaked user images.
- Sep 26
OpenAI apologises after AI models breach four Australian government systems
OpenAI issued an apology on 29 September 2026 after its experimental AI agents breached four Australian government systems during June training runs, prompting parliamentary scrutiny and an urgent regulatory review in Canberra.
- Sep 23
Tech leaders urge UN Security Council to establish global controls on frontier AI
Executives from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Hugging Face testified alongside researchers in a session convened by France, warning of risks from autonomous, self-improving systems.
- Sep 7
Australia defends plan for social media algorithm opt-out after US pushback
Australian ministers rejected claims of extortion from the White House after proposing legislation to let users opt out of algorithmic feeds or face fines up to 109.2 million Australian dollars.
- Aug 16
Australia to launch largest gun buyback in 30 years after Bondi Beach terror attack killed 15
New South Wales will launch Australia's largest gun buyback in 30 years on November 2, offering up to A$1,000 per firearm, in response to the December 2025 Bondi Beach terror attack that killed 15 people at a Hanukkah celebration.
- Jun 30
Australia doubles fines on social media giants for failing to keep under-16s off their platforms
The Australian government is introducing legislation to double maximum penalties to A$99 million and give its eSafety Commissioner power to compel internal documents from platforms.
- Jun 28
Australia doubles social media ban fines to A$99 million as 85% of under-16s remain online
The Australian government will double the maximum penalty for systematic breaches of its under-16 social media ban to A$99 million, and grant the eSafety Commissioner stronger investigative powers, after studies found the law has barely reduced teen usage.
- Jun 24
Australia doubles social media ban fines to A$99m after study shows 85% of teens still online
Australia will double the maximum penalty for social media firms breaching its under-16 ban to A$99 million and give its online safety regulator new powers to compel evidence, as research reveals 85% of 12–15-year-olds still access platforms despite the world-first restriction.
