Australia news LIVE: AI agent breaks into Medicare, Albanese reveals; Harvey Weinstein sentenced to 15 years for sexual assault

Emily KaineUpdated September 24, 2026 — 7:06am,first published 6:31amKey PostsMorning headlinesBy Emily KaineHello and welcome to our live coverage of national news this Thursday, September 24. Here’s what you need to know today. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed an AI agent from OpenAI accessed public and non-public files from the government’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Portal. Speaking at a press conference in New York this morning, he said the government believed there was no breach of personal information. Albanese will also use an address in New York to declare the post-1945 international order “no longer fit for purpose” and warn Australia must help to replace it as growing strategic competition between the US and China transforms the Indo-Pacific. Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting a former production assistant in 2006. Weinstein was convicted in June 2025 of a first-degree criminal sexual act for assaulting Miriam Haley at his Manhattan apartment. And Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian declared his country would not surrender in a defiant address to the United Nations just one day after US President Donald Trump used the same stage to renew threats to “annihilate” Iran. Latest Posts7.06amOpenAI knew of breach in August, ministers only notified last week: MarlesBy Emily KaineMarles has just revealed that OpenAI were aware of the breach back in August, but government ministers were only told about it at the end of last week.“OpenAI themselves found out about it in August as they were going through and looking at all that its model had done, that the agents had done,” he told News24.“Services Australia were informed about this around two weeks ago. Government ministers were informed about this at the end of last week and over the weekend. That’s when I became aware of it.”Pressed on why it had taken so long for OpenAI to notify the government of the breach, Marles said:“The question you raise of why it took so long for the Australian government to be notified is a reasonable one, and that’s a point that we’ve made to OpenAI.”7.01amMarles says breach has had no impact on personal dataBy Emily KaineDeputy Prime Minister Richard Marles says the OpenAI breach has had “no impact” on personal data as he provides more clarity on the agent’s break-in to the government’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Portal.Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles.Alex Ellinghausen“I think it’s important to stress that there’s no data of any person which has been accessed here, as I am advised, there’s no impact to the system. So, actually, as I am advised, that the impact to our systems is very minor,” he told News24 this morning.“The impact is minor in the sense that no person’s data was accessed here, we’re we’re not talking about a system which has been affected in any way.”6.54am‘Australians are rightly worried’: Hanson-Young calls for AI moratoriumBy Emily KaineGreens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has called the news that an OpenAI agent accessed the government’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Portal “extraordinary” as she urged the Australian government for a moratorium on AI while it assessed the risks of the unregulated technology.“Australians are rightly worried and concerned about the power of this technology and the lack of regulation and the lack of guardrails,” she told ABC’s News Breakfast this morning.“We have to take action. And I urge the prime minister to not waste this moment. Big AI needs regulation, and it’s not there yet. And we should put a pause, put a moratorium before we let them run loose here in Australia.”Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young is urging the government to announce a moratorium on AI. Alex Ellinghausen6.42amAlbanese says government not aware of any other breachesBy Emily KaineAlbanese is still speaking at a press conference in New York, and has been asked whether there is a possibility other services have been breached without the government’s knowledge.“Be clear, this is not something that I’m not aware of happening anywhere else. So when you have new precedents set, that is one of the reasons why we need to take all of these issues very seriously,” he told reporters.“We’re aware of the risk of artificial intelligence … But we need to make sure that systems are put in place and protocols are put in place as well, and Mr Altman certainly has acknowledged and has said that, [and] I’ve invited further discussions with him as well that their protocols were not up to scratch here.”Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks in New York.Dominic Lorrimer6.36amHarvey Weinstein sentenced to 15 years for New York sexual assaultBy Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting a former production assistant in 2006, following the ex-movie mogul’s conviction at a retrial last year.Weinstein, 74, was convicted in June 2025 of first-degree criminal sexual act for assaulting Miriam Haley at his Manhattan apartment, the culmination of a six-year legal saga that saw his 2020 conviction overturned by New York’s highest court. Weinstein has denied assaulting anyone or having non-consensual sex.Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Wednesday praised Haley for her testimony and said he was moved by her courage.A Weinstein spokesman said in a statement that Weinstein maintains his innocence and strongly disagrees with the sentence imposed by Judge Curtis Farber.6.28amAI agent accessed government portal, Albanese revealsBy Emily KainePrime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed an AI agent from OpenAI accessed public and non-public files from the government’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Portal.Speaking to a press conference from New York, Albanese confirmed no personal information was believed to have been accessed at this stage.“A forensic investigation, aided by the Australian Signals Directorate, is now under way to ascertain more information, including what other government systems were affected. The Medicare Statistics Reporting Portal is a public-facing statistics portal that contains non-sensitive Medicare information relating to data and statistics, such as spending,” he told reporters.Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaking from New York.Nine“No personal information is believed to have been accessed at this stage, but investigations are ongoing. Evidence currently available is there is no broader compromise to the Services Australia network.”Albanese said he had also spoken to the chief executive of OpenAI, Sam Altman, about the breach.“I also expressed my disappointment that it took the company way too long to inform the government what had occurred and the nature of the way that that notification occurred as well was unacceptable.”Morning headlinesBy Emily KaineHello and welcome to our live coverage of national news this Thursday, September 24. Here’s what you need to know today. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed an AI agent from OpenAI accessed public and non-public files from the government’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Portal. Speaking at a press conference in New York this morning, he said the government believed there was no breach of personal information. Albanese will also use an address in New York to declare the post-1945 international order “no longer fit for purpose” and warn Australia must help to replace it as growing strategic competition between the US and China transforms the Indo-Pacific. Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting a former production assistant in 2006. Weinstein was convicted in June 2025 of a first-degree criminal sexual act for assaulting Miriam Haley at his Manhattan apartment. And Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian declared his country would not surrender in a defiant address to the United Nations just one day after US President Donald Trump used the same stage to renew threats to “annihilate” Iran. 1 of 1