New national centre to tackle online extremism and terrorism

The Federal Government has announced it will spend $74 million over two years to set up a dedicated national centre to detect and disrupt the evolving threat of online violent extremism and terrorism.

The Counter Terrorism Online Centre will be able to detect activity in chat rooms and on gaming platforms, as well as on more public-facing services.

It will enable specialist counter-terrorism investigators and intelligence analysts to monitor high-risk online spaces, assess credible threats and coordinate the disruption of extremist content and activity, including through covert online engagement.

The Centre will be jointly led by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Australian Federal Police, working in partnership with local and international law enforcement partners, to target online terrorists who threaten violence and manipulate vulnerable young people.

The Minister for Home Affairs, Tony Burke, said the centre would give police and intelligence services the resources they need to target terrorists and violent extremists online.

“More young Australians are being radicalised online, and it happens fast. We already have centres dedicated to protecting children and combatting cyber crime; establishing a centre for online violence extremism and terrorism is the next logical step in a fast-moving threat environment."

“Everyone needs to be alert to potential threats from terrorist and extremist organisations online and I urge anyone who sees something that raises concerns to contact the National Security Hotline”.

Legislation passed in January 2024 made it illegal to possess or distribute violent extremist material using a carriage service. In the past two years, 27 individuals have been charged under the law, 15 of them aged 17 years or younger.