Foreign interference occurs when activities are undertaken by or on behalf of a foreign actor that are coercive, clandestine, deceptive or corrupting and are contrary to Australia’s sovereignty, values and national interests. A proactive approach against the threat of foreign interference helps to safeguard students, personnel, academics, and intellectual property, whilst ensuring Curtin continues to benefit from international collaboration.
As a Curtin employee, it is your duty to:
1. Develop an understanding of foreign interference;
2. Identify when foreign interference is, or may be, occurring; and
3. Report any instances to appropriate Curtin authorities.
| If you would like to anonymously report an incident which may relate to foreign interference, you can submit a report here.
To complete a disclosure of interest, click here. To contact us, click here. |
Disclosures do not indicate a concern or necessarily mean that a relationship or activity has to stop. Disclosure, however, does help to protect employees and Curtin by demonstrating transparency, enabling centralised assessment for potential risks and registration requirements, and leading to tailored training, advice, support, and mitigation.
Accordion
Foreign interference warning signs
What to watch for:
Possible actions by foreign institutions that may be inconsistent with Australia’s academic freedoms and values and the university’s interests may include:
- Demands/inducements – change content in subjects, cancel visits or activities, or grant unnecessarily broad access to information
- Use of acquired access to provide access to unapproved third parties
- Monitoring of academic staff, administrators, students or visitors on topics of interest/sensitivity – in person or online
- Harassment, hostility, intimidation or other negative conduct – in person or online
- Intrusion into life on campus – suppress criticism or dissent
- Unfamiliar/unusual attendance at activities/lecture on topics of interest/sensitivity
Additional resources
- UFIT Guidelines to counter foreign interference in the Australian university sector
- Acting on behalf of a foreign principal and ‘registrable agreements’ factsheet
- Foreign principals factsheet
- Registerable activities factsheet
- Sensitive topics and geopolitically sensitive regions
- Influencing a political governmental process factsheet
Contact us
For further information, or to register any concerns, please contact foreign.risk@curtin.edu.au
Additional contacts
Conduct and standards at Curtin
Investigation and discipline
Curtin security