The Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) says it has mounted offensive operations against local cybercriminals.

Australia’s cyber-warfare agency has put its offensive capabilities up against cyber scams emerging amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

It says it is targeting a number of crime groups that are seeking to benefit from a global shift to working from home.

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds has revealed that ASD’s usually highly classified offensive operations are being undertaken as other forms of criminal enterprise dry up.

With hundreds of thousands accessing welfare and other stimulus packages, ID checks and other security measures are expected to be particularly lax, creating opportunities for scams.

“Our offensive cyber campaign has only just begun and we will continue to strike back at these cyber criminals operating offshore as they attempt to steal money and data from Australians,” Australian Signals Directorate's director general Rachel Noble said.

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds says blows have been landed.

“We are hitting back through the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), who have already successfully disrupted activities from foreign criminals by disabling their infrastructure and blocking their access to stolen information,” Senator Reynolds said.

“Some of these cybercriminals have even posed as health officials in an attempt to exploit vulnerable Australians, by infecting their computers with malware and stealing their private information.”