A top Australian spy said he is considering raising the terrorism alert due to the government's increasing concern about the chances of an attack on home soil.

During an interview with ABC on Tuesday night, Australian Security and Intelligence Organization (ASIO) director-general David Irvine, said the threat level in Australia may rise from medium to high for the first time.

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"The threat level is currently at a very elevated level of medium. I'm seriously considering  the notion of lifting it higher," he said.

Irvine told ABC that over the past couple of years, the threat of terror in Australia has caused an "elevated level of concern."

ASIO's director general revealed that he had knowledge of people who were planning an attack on the country, due to the influence from the ongoing conflict in Syria and Iraq on young Australians.

Irvine said that the war waged by the Islamic State has affected Australians not only in terms of those who wanted to join the fight, but also with regards to those who are intending to launch an attack on their home soil.

 When asked whether he will be raising the terror threat level before he retired from his five-year stint as head of ASIO on Friday, Irvine said the decision is something that the entire organization is "actively considering."

In an interview with news agencies, Attorney General George Brandis, he said Australia will be adjusting its threat level if there was a possibility of an imminent terrorist attack.

 Meanwhile, the United Kingdom has just recently changed its "substantial" level of terrorist threat to "severe" in the wake of the conflict in Iraq and Syria.

The adjustment of the threat level of the British government was reportedly in recognition of the terrorism threat posed by radical individuals and those who were returning to the UK from the embattled countries.

TagsAustralia, ASIO, David Irvine, terrorism threat, ISIS, Iraq