News Centre

AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett Opening Statement

Thank you and good morning.

Terrorists and hatemongers are manipulating vulnerable and susceptible individuals at rapid speed in part because of existing and emerging technology, and the blurred boundary of the virtual and real worlds.

It used to take months or years to radicalise an individual, but now, in some cases, it is happening within days. The speed and scale of radicalisation is becoming one of our most significant challenges, especially when it comes to youth.

Too many of our young and vulnerable are at the crossroads to crime, and too many are already desensitised to violence given what they have been viewing or creating online.

We need to use a combination of human intelligence and artificial intelligence to disrupt and detect the extremist recruiters and inciters, while protecting and diverting those at risk.

Shielding kids from manipulation and harm is one of my key priorities as Commissioner. 

The Counter Terrorism Online Centre will allow ASIO and the AFP to identify, target and disrupt credible threats, which will be triaged and coordinated for action.

The new capability will also provide an early warning system for the nation’s Joint Counter Terrorism Teams about emerging hate groups and individuals who use social media, gaming platforms, online forums and our dark web to incite or commit violence.

Thank you.