Good morning. An OpenAI engineer has been charged with hiding a recording device in an executive conference room at the ChatGPT maker's San Francisco office, wrapped in toilet paper and plugged into the back of a TV.
OpenAI says it used its own AI models to trace the encrypted device to the employee within days, and security staff later found a second recorder in a bag he had left elsewhere in the building.
Prosecutors allege he used a chatbot to research how to build and hide the recorder, and he faces up to 5 years in prison if convicted, though OpenAI says no source code, model weights or customer data were taken.
All the headlines and more below...
INTERNATIONAL SCAMMING IS NOW BIGGER THAN THE ILLEGAL DRUGS TRADE
Intelligence agencies calculate the international scam economy is now bigger than the illegal drugs trade, run by offshore networks using AI to dupe victims faster and at greater scale. In Australia, the ACCC estimates financial scams cost individuals more than $2 billion a year.
AUSTRAC chief executive Brendan Thomas said criminal networks are spreading through the Pacific using "scam compounds", along with money laundering ventures moving money between Australia, South America and the Middle East. Investment scams, social media phishing and business email compromise are now being run at greater scale with AI.
Financial crime agencies from across the Pacific signed a new intelligence-sharing deal with Nauru at a meeting in Sydney, after a rise in local "money mules" recruited to move criminal proceeds out of the region. Australia has already traced illicit funds to South America and the Middle East through existing information-sharing schemes with Pacific nations.
AUSTRALIAN NEWS
AUSTRAC began issuing $21,840 infringement fines to companies and $4,368 to individuals for failing to enrol under new anti-money laundering rules covering about 100,000 extra businesses. LINK
The federal government released legislation for a 30% minimum tax on certain trusts expected to raise $4.47B by the 2030 financial year as critics highlight private school exemptions. LINK
Experts said some Australian cafes and restaurants used the new 1 October credit card surcharge ban as cover for broader cost-driven price rises. LINK
NSW WILL MAKE AGENTS DISCLOSE AI-ALTERED RENTAL PHOTOS FROM 2027 AS "HOUSEFISHING" SPREADS
From 2027, NSW will require real estate agents to disclose when photos in rental ads have been digitally altered or generated with AI, where the images could mislead prospective tenants. Agents are already using AI to brighten rooms, add furniture, improve gardens and remove unattractive features, and in some cases to create features that do not exist, a practice now called "housefishing".
The NSW rule applies when altered imagery is reasonably likely to mislead. Other states take a different approach: Victoria already bans property advertising with photos digitally enhanced to hide undesirable features, without requiring an AI label, while Queensland and Tasmania have protections against misleading property representations.
Research on disclosure suggests a label does not guarantee renters understand what was changed, and some studies found that disclosing AI use can make consumers trust an ad more. A generic "AI-altered" label tells renters that something changed, but not what, such as a garden that has been digitally enhanced.
COMPANY NEWS
Origin Energy said there is still no evidence hacked data from about 900,000 customers is on the dark web as it maintains 2027 earnings guidance of $1.55B-$1.85B. LINK
Domino’s Pizza risked losing control of some international markets as its US master franchisor blamed the ASX-listed group’s sales slump, after it posted a wider loss last financial year. LINK
Rex suspended flights between Sydney and the NSW regional centres of Orange and Port Macquarie from 25 October, blaming fuel costs after earlier receiving federal rescue support. LINK
The Federal Court refused to stop Atlassian putting an engineer with ADHD on a performance-management plan as the self-represented worker offered no medical evidence linking his condition to performance issues. LINK
Deloitte reviewed AI-linked citation errors in its WA university merger cost-benefit report estimating $7.6B in gains over 20 years, as academics and unions criticised its accuracy and methodology. LINK
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TRIVIA
What is illegal to keep as a pet in Switzerland without providing it with a companion?
Answer below
ANSWER
A guinea pig (they are social creatures!)
