BBC News Briefing

24 September, 2026

Barbara has shoulder-length brown hair and blue eyes

Barbara Tasch

Hello. Australia has reacted angrily to the world's first known breach of a government system by AI agents. We're also bringing you the latest from Xi Jinping's visit to the US. And find out what happened on a remote Scottish island for the first time in three decades.

TOP OF THE AGENDA

Rogue AI agent 'infiltrated' Australian government website in world first

Close-up of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wearing a suit standing in front of white and green background.

Albanese said OpenAI took "too long" to disclose the breach. Credit: EPA/Shutterstock

Australia has launched an urgent review after an OpenAI agent hacked part of the government's healthcare scheme. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the autonomous computer program had “infiltrated” the statistics portal in June. OpenAI became aware of the breach in August and told Australia's government in September, via an email to a general inbox. The California-based company said their models "took actions we did not intend" and that it had found no record of patient data being accessed. Cyber-security experts say the incident - the world's first known breach of a government system by rogue AI agents - is a wake up call for regulators.

Get the whole story

'Utterly unacceptable': Watch as Australia's Deputy PM Richard Marles reacts to breach.

The timeline: What we know about how the OpenAI agent hack of the Australian government website unfolded.

Government inbox: The email address OpenAI used to tell the Australian government was 'looked at once a day', an Australian minister says.

WORLD HEADLINES

Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump stand on a red carpet on an airport tarmac, with their wives behind them and military personal to their left.

Trump warmly welcomes China's Xi

The US president greeted his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping with a military flyover and 100ft red carpet.

What happens next >

Judge temporarily stops Trump media ban

CNN, MS NOW and Politico must immediately have White House access reinstated, a judge has ruled.

Get the latest >

An activist is speaking into a mic and standing in front a blue and orange banner.

Why the Dutch have a new word for labia

A leading dictionary is adding a new term after activists argued the old noun was stigmatising.

What it means >

Eight sailors aboard US carrier attempted suicide

The crew members took part in a lengthy deployment on board the USS Abraham Lincoln, the Navy said.

What happened>

Bombed out buildings in the city of Oleshky are seen among leaf-less trees.

Eating garden weeds to survive in Oleshky

The BBC hears harrowing accounts from inside the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city, which is cut off from food and water.

What life is like>

NEWS FROM THE UK

Unnecessary mastectomies: NHS trust will review 4,500 more breast cancer cases after failings including delayed diagnoses.

English Channel: Anti-migrant activist Daniel Thomas has been arrested over a video of a dinghy being slashed with a knife.

Forever chemical: Blood tests show "really high levels" of a cancer-causing chemical in dozens of people living near a factory.
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BEYOND THE HEADLINES

Is Burnham right to blame Russia for disinformation campaign?

Russia has long been accused of disinformation campaigns in Europe. Credit: BBC Verify

In his UN speech, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Russia was carrying out an "insidious campaign" to target people in the UK with lies. BBC Verify has tracked – and debunked – numerous online campaigns produced by Russia-linked groups that have attempted to shift public opinion on issues like the war with Ukraine, influence elections and undermine trust in institutions.

How the campaigns work

Collage of Dakota Johnson in Persuasion, Daisy Edgar-Jones and George MacKay in Sense and Sensibility, and Colin Firth in Pride and Prejudice

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

From page to screen

Adaptations of Jane Austen's novels fail in a number of areas, according to experts.

Find out how

And finally... in Scotland

The island of North Ronaldsay in Orkney has recorded its first birth in more than three decades. Baby Duncan was born in a house built by his mother's ancestors, who bought the island in 1727. See how his parents followed tradition in sharing news of his birth.