Australia is bulking up its arsenal of electronic weaponry in the face of growing cyber threats from foreign militaries and overseas criminals.
The federal government on Friday announced two new strategies, marking a new direction on national security.
Australia's defence forces will launch a new "information warfare" division to protect military targets from attacks, gather intelligence and launch its own assaults.
The unit, to begin with about 100 staff from Saturday, is authorised to carry out self-defence, passive defence, active defence and offensive operations.
"This is a result of the changing character of contemporary conflict," Dan Tehan, the minister responsible for cyber security, told reporters in Melbourne.
The government has also set its sights on foreign criminal networks following a spate of ransomware attacks that have impacted some Australian businesses.
It has given the nation's cyber intelligence agency the power to launch offensive operations to shut down organised offshore criminals.
As it stands, the Australian Signals Directorate has only been directed to "disrupt, degrade, deny and deter" terrorists.
Any activity will have to be authorised by the minister.
"We have to make sure that we are keeping the mums and dads, small businesses, large businesses, government departments and agencies secure in this nation and that is why we have made this direction," Mr Tehan said.
He insisted it was not about catching up with the rest of the world, but ensuring Australia was at the cutting edge.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said cyber criminals were finding new and more sophisticated ways to gain access to victims and extort money.
"Our response to criminal cyber threats should not just be defensive. We must take the fight to the criminals," he said in a statement.
While the government will target criminals wherever they seek to hurt Australians, the public - including businesses - also have a role to play, he said.
Since the end of 2014, more than 114,000 suspected cyber crimes have been reported - 23,700 alone in the past six months.
"We must work together to share threat information and learn from each other about the online threats that seek to do us harm."
Labor leader Bill Shorten described cyber warfare as the new frontline for national security and urged industry to pitch in.
"It may be inconvenient and frustrating and expensive to put up the defences now, but ... more frustrating and more expensive if you are the victim of this cyber warfare and this cyber hacking," he told reporters in Brisbane.
