October 2026 in Retrospect
News from HSF Kramer
Cross examining cyber: Andrew Penn and Vikram Sharma
Our latest podcast is now out, the cross examination of Andrew Penn and Vikram Sharma, two leading voices at the intersection of cybersecurity, quantum and emerging technologies.
The conversation explores the opportunities quantum computing could unlock beyond cybersecurity, the growing convergence of quantum, AI and cyber risk, and why boards need to start preparing for quantum resilience now.
You can listen here
Cross examining cyber: Charles Carmakal
If you want another podcast, we’ve also recently released the cross examination of Charles Carmakal, exploring how geopolitics is reshaping cyber risk, the evolving tactics of threat actors and the practical steps organisations can take to build resilience.
You can listen here
Cyber Risk Survey Roadshow
Now in its fourth year, the HSF Kramer Cyber Risk Survey draws on insights from general counsel and senior legal counsel across Australia’s leading organisations, exploring how legal leaders perceive, prepare for and respond to cyber risk.
Throughout October, we brought the findings of this year’s report to Sydney, Perth and Melbourne as part of our Cyber Risk Survey Roadshow. Across four seminars attended by more than 250 clients and four General Counsel Roundtables involving more than 70 General Counsel, we explored the key cyber risks, challenges and trends emerging from this year’s survey.
Download our Cyber Risk Survey Report here.
The HSF Kramer Cyber “Essential Eight”:
The cyber landscape continues to evolve at pace. It can be challenging to keep up, so we have collated our “Essential Eight” cyber stories from the last month, so you don’t have to.
 | "Black October"If the aim of Cybersecurity Awareness Month was to raise awareness, consider the message received. October has instead earned the rather ominous nickname “Black October”, following a concentrated run of cyber incidents, critical vulnerabilities and security disclosures spanning widely used web technologies, software supply chains and cloud platforms. Awareness achieved. Read more here. |
 | Houston, We Have A PHP ProblemTwo critical vulnerabilities in PHP sent organisations scrambling to patch in October, with ASD warning that versions released more than 20 years ago, may be affected. As alarming as that sounds, there is a silver lining that advances in AI-assisted security research can help uncover vulnerabilities that might otherwise remain hidden. The catch, of course, is that the same increasingly capable tools are also available to attackers. |
 | ASD's Annual Threat Report Is OutASD’s 2025-26 Cyber Threat Report is out, and the picture is a busy one: ASD’s ACSC responded to more than 1,500 cyber security incidents over the year, data breach incidents increased by 66% and ransomware remains a persistent threat. State actors continue to target Australian governments and business, and advances in AI are lowering the barrier to entry for threat actors. Read the report here. |
 | Clean Up In Aisle FiveFood retailers had more than unexpected items in the bagging area to contend with this month. One of the world’s largest food retailers was forced to take systems offline across parts of its European and US operations following a cyber incident. In France, things got considerably hotter when a separate cyber attack targeted connected refrigeration systems, reportedly pushing some fridges and freezers to 50°C and spoiling food. |
 | New Essentials Just DroppedThe ASD launched its new ASD Essentials framework, providing a consistent approach to cyber security across enterprise IT, cloud and operational technology, with scope for additional chapters over time. Each chapter uses the same three layers, principles, actions and domains, but adapts the specific requirements to the threats, risks and practical constraints of each environment. Read more here. |
 | Breaking The (BANK)ChainCrypto giant Binance has been hit by a cyber attack suspected to be the largest crypto hack on record. Around US$6.3 billion in digital assets were reportedly affected, making for a particularly expensive day at the crypto office. Binance has since moved to freeze affected assets while the circumstances surrounding the breach are investigated. Read more here. |
 | AI Gets A Rebrand?Artificial Intelligence is so last month. A new US Executive Order directs federal agencies to replace “Artificial Intelligence” and “AI” with “Super Intelligence” and “SI” in official communications, reflecting what the Administration describes as the technology’s increasingly transformative capabilities. Read more here. |
 | More Data, More ProblemsThe OAIC has released its latest NDB statistics, which show that large-scale data breaches are on the rise, affecting more Australians when things go wrong. Unique passwords and a healthy suspicion of unexpected messages remain your friends. Read more here. |
Cameron Whittfield
Partner, Melbourne
Peter Jones
Partner, Head of TMT, Asia, Singapore
Christine Wong
Partner, Sydney
Merryn Quayle
Managing Partner, Melbourne Office, Melbourne
Emily Coghlan
Partner, Melbourne
Magdalena Blanch-de Wilt
Executive Counsel, Melbourne
Kaman Tsoi
Special Counsel, Melbourne
Heather Kelly
Senior Associate, Melbourne
Key contacts
Cameron Whittfield
Partner, Melbourne
Peter Jones
Partner, Head of TMT, Asia, Singapore
Christine Wong
Partner, Sydney
Merryn Quayle
Managing Partner, Melbourne Office, Melbourne
Emily Coghlan
Partner, Melbourne
Magdalena Blanch-de Wilt
Executive Counsel, Melbourne
Kaman Tsoi
Special Counsel, Melbourne
Heather Kelly
Senior Associate, Melbourne
Rebecca Gill
Senior Associate, Melbourne
Caitlyn Bellis
Senior Associate, Sydney
Brooke Crenfeldt
Solicitor, Sydney
Annabelle L’Estrange
Solicitor, Sydney
Disclaimer
The articles published on this website, current at the dates of publication set out above, are for reference purposes only. They do not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. Specific legal advice about your specific circumstances should always be sought separately before taking any action.