About Us

Countering Foreign Interference

Australian Universities are responsible for the global sharing of innovation and knowledge. 

Sharing knowledge and collaborating with partners across the globe is intrinsically linked to CQUniversity’s values, especially Engagement and Openness. 

Global partnerships and collaborations benefit our performance and reputation as a university, and they directly link to our ability to deliver world-class research. Unfortunately, international engagement carries risks as some foreign actors might seek to harm our experts, our students, our institution, and Australia’s broader interests. Therefore, any CQUniversity staff member or student who wants to engage with global partners should be aware of the risks and know how to identify and report potential, perceived, or real threats. 

Being vigilant and proactive in managing the risk of foreign interference is the best way to protect our intellectual property, our people, our students, CQUniversity’s reputation, and Australia’s best interests. 

Understanding and Managing Foreign Interference

According to Home Affairs Foreign interference occurs when activities are carried out by, or on behalf of a foreign actor, which are coercive, clandestine, deceptive or corrupting and contrary to Australia’s sovereignty, values and national interests. All governments, including Australia’s, try to include deliberations on issues of importance to them. These activities, when conducted in an open and transparent manner, are a normal aspect of international relations and are an example of Foreign Influence.

Espionage, malicious cyber-attacks, doxing and the spread of misinformation on social media serve as examples of foreign interference. Sometimes, you can easily spot threats, but often, threats might go unnoticed, especially if a foreign actor tries to build trust and mutually beneficial relationships.

Foreign actors aim to advance their nation’s political, economic, and commercial interests. To achieve this, they try to manipulate individuals and organisations. This manipulation poses a serious threat not only to the University but potentially also to our national political systems, defence capabilities, economic interests, innovation and intellectual property, community safety, and democratic freedoms.

If the University is compromised, this can have serious consequences for the organisation and its reputation. 

Awareness is key. Examples of actions and behaviours that could represent a risk or actual threat include:

  • Being subjected to coercive measures such as unrealistic demands, harassment, threats or intimidation – either in-person or online.
  • Attempts to limit and restrict free speech, public assembly or criticism. 
  • Physical or online monitoring or surveillance. 
  • Doxing whereby an actor seeks to use the semi-private views of individuals against them to influence harassment and intimidation.
  • Unusual attendance or intrusion at physical or online meetings or events. 
  • Demands and requests for access to information or excessive pressure being placed on someone to provide information or make changes to information. 
  • Feeling pressured to overturn decisions or positions or to cancel events or activities – especially if related to sensitive topics or agendas.
  • The provision of excessive attention or gifts and benefits and the subsequent non-disclosure or lack of transparency around such benefits. 

To make an anonymous report about a foreign interference issue, please complete the Countering Foreign Interference: Anonymous reporting form. 

You can also submit general questions, concerns or feedback about foreign interference matters by completing the Countering Foreign Interference: Questions, Concerns and Feedback form. 

The University Foreign Interference Taskforce (UFIT) was established to protect the systems, operations, innovation and intellectual property of Australian universities. The guidelines are not intended to preclude or stop global engagement activity but are instead designed to help those working and studying at an Australian university, identify and manage risks in a sensible and proportionate way. 

The UFIT developed the Guidelines to Countering Foreign Interference in the Australian University Sector, to support the sector’s response to foreign interference challenges. The UFIT Guidelines aim to assist those working or studying within the university sector to carefully consider risk mitigation while balancing the ongoing free exchange of ideas and academic freedom

The guidelines focus on four key areas including:

As stakeholders of an Australian higher education institution, it is important to understand these guidelines, as they outline the University's obligations and will help to manage and mitigate risk. More information about this issue is also available at Home Affairs Countering Foreign Interference – Education and Research. 

Through CQUniversity’s Foreign Interference Steering Committee, two key tools have been developed to help staff make informed decisions about international engagement and partnerships, conduct due diligence, and manage threats related to university operations and the intellectual property our people produce. 

These tools are the Declaration of Foreign Affiliations and Arrangements form and the Foreign Interference Policy and Procedure. These tools were designed to provide simple support to anyone within the university community involved in foreign collaborations and partnerships. 

CQUniversity’s Foreign Interference Policy and Procedure aims to outline how the University will handle foreign interference risk. All members of the University Council, employees, students, affiliates, and employees of any university-controlled entities must follow the Policy and Procedure.

At CQUniversity, there are also several useful and practical policies, frameworks, systems and processes that help to promote a culture of robust risk management and security, including:

There are many other resources that may also be beneficial when identifying and assessing possible foreign interference risks including the CQUniversity Codes of Conduct for Staff and Research, the Fraud and Corruption Control Framework, the Conflict of Interest Policy and Procedure, Research Data Management Policy and Procedure and the Procurement Policy and Procedure. 

These resources, along with other key governance documents can be found on the CQUniversity Policy site.

CQUniversity commits to managing risk in a sensible way that is proportionate to the activity and likelihood of a detrimental event or outcome. We also commit to freedom of speech and encouraging collaboration with global partners. Our governance mechanisms, corporate culture, and values align with the UFIT guidelines and the objective of supporting a resilient culture within our university community. This culture recognises the value of robust exchanges of ideas and global collaboration. 

Individuals who become aware of, or wish to raise issues associated with, foreign interference and the University can submit their concerns via the anonymous online reporting form, or by contacting the Chair of the Foreign Interference Steering Committee or Vice-President (Research) at cfi@cqu.edu.au. 

Concerns will be investigated, determined and actioned by the Chair of the Foreign Interference Steering Committee (delegated by the Vice-President (Research)). Investigations will be informed by the Foreign Interference Policy and Procedure, and the Guidelines to Counter Foreign Interference in the Australian University Sector.

University stakeholders can also submit concerns, questions or feedback surrounding the University’s foreign partnerships and governance via the Concerns, Questions and Feedback form. Specific or urgent questions or enquiries can also be directed to cfi@cqu.edu.au.