AFP to work with Australia's diaspora communities to draw out foreign interference crimes

In an apparent scale down from the Abbott-era "Team Australia" approach to diaspora communities, an informed public that has confidence to call the National Security Hotline is being regarded by the AFP as the best defence against hostile state actors.

The crime of foreign interference, more broadly threats or intimidation orchestrated by foreign governments or proxies to silence, influence or monitor, is difficult to prosecute. There has only been one person charged in Australia under five-year-old foreign interference laws, not a common act among Five Eyes nation partners.

"Threats of foreign interference are not constrained to one sector of the Australian community not perpetrated by a single nation state," AFP Special Investigations Commander Stephen Nutt said in a statement.

"Foreign state actors that undertake hostile activity against other countries are creating and pursuing opportunities to interfere with Australians - from decision makers at all levels of government, across a range of sectors, and our communities."

It comes just days after a "hive" of foreign spies, later pinged as Russian, was revealed as being foiled and later deported. And while the Albanese government is trying to stabilise relations with China, former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull last week told a parliamentary committee exposing China's activities was the "key purpose" of the foreign interference laws introduced in 2018.

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The AFP won't single out nations behind known cases of the foreign interference, but it is sending out its community liaison teams to meet with diaspora communities and religious leaders while also issuing a detailed factsheet that has been translated into more than 30 languages.

Victims or witnesses will be urged to call the National Security Hotline, perhaps anonymously.

The AFP's community liaison teams are understood to be working closely with a number of communities who may be at risk of foreign interference, while the AFP is working with state and territory police as well as intelligence agencies.

"On a community level, foreign interference is defined as threats and intimidation directed, supervised or financed by foreign governments and targeted towards CALD (culturally and linguistically diverse) communities in order to cause harm and impact on Australia's multicultural way of life," Commander Nutt said.

The deceptive and threatening criminal behaviour orchestrated for foreign governments could be behind closed doors, but it could also be in the open such as online disinformation campaigns or surveillance at community events.

It could include threats of assault, blackmail, kidnapping, deprivation of liberty or coercion by threats to family members living overseas.

But the key, under law, is the act is linked to a foreign government or proxy.

ASIO director general Mike Burgess last week revealed a "hive" of foreign spies looking to steal Australia's most sensitive secrets had been quietly removed from the country. Nine newspapers reported on Friday the "hive" was a highly active group of Russian spies posing as diplomats.

ASIO also warned it is busier than it's ever been, with Mr Burgess likening the fight against hostile foreign adversaries as "hand-to-hand combat".