JOIN USOn the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Australian Federal Police commissioner Tony Negus said home- grown threats remained the primary concern for authorities but he did not rule out the possibility of civil unrest.
"There are a range of different communities who are feeling... somewhat left out... and this is a very broad question for government in many ways, and the social issues attached to this, education issues and welfare and a range of other things," Nexus was quoted as saying by ABC.
Negus said he has sought formal briefings from London's Scotland Yard on any implications for Australia following the recent riots in the British capital and other cities.
"We've got a liaison officer based in London working with the Metropolitan Police and I've certainly asked that he participate in debriefs in that country and provide whatever information they can back to us," he said.
The riots broke out in London last month after a man was shot dead by police in Tottenham, and arson and looting soon spread to other cities across England, shocking the country as well as the world.
Some observers have said economic deprivation and discontent was a reason that incited rioters, and the Australian police chief is mindful of this.
"I wouldn't want to profile particular groups but there are young people in this country who are feeling disassociated with what's happening in a broader sense... I think we've all got to be very careful and examine very carefully as a society what that means for Australia, and what we can do to prevent such actions happening here," he said.
He said he had also spoken to Prime Minister Julia Gillard over the issue and how the Government should act to prevent such incidents.
On the issue of terror threats, the official said an attack was still possible on Australian shores and even if good policing had so far prevented attacks in Australia, there was no place for complacency.
"Don't think that because it happened 10 years ago that all this stuff is in the past," he warned.
"These things can happen in Australia. We do have a number of people working full time on these roles and we need the community's support to make sure that they work with us to prevent whatever attacks might take place here".