DIAC's move to publish the photographs was quickly questioned on Twitter. Asylum seeker NGO, House of Welcome, called the photos ''creepy'' and ''upsetting''.
UnitingJustice national director Elenie Poulos described them as ''heartless and abusive''.
Greens immigration spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young said the pictures were shameful.
“Today’s vulgar display from the Department of Immigration ... truly is a move dredged up from the bottom of the barrel,” the Senator Hanson-Young said in a statement.
“It is shameful that this government is exploiting people’s private despair for cheap political gain."
Photos about 'saving lives'
Immigration Department spokesman Sandi Logan said that the department believed the images were "entirely appropriate".
Mr Logan said the department had taken the necessary steps to protect the identity of the asylum seekers involved.
"The opportunity to demonstrate graphically to people considering getting on the next boat is an absolutely vital opportunity for us," he told Fairfax Media.
Mr Logan said that the department regularly documented transfers and made them public, as it thought it was important to be "transparent in the way that we operate".
Mr Logan also said the images helped with the "believability factor" - getting the message of Australia's changed policy out to people smugglers and facilitators, those considering getting on a boat and disapora communities.
"This is about saving lives at sea," he said.
The woman who is pictured with her head in her hands had been briefed within the previous hour about the transfer to PNG and was waiting for initial checks, Mr Logan said.
It is not known if she was upset because of the PNG transfer or another reason.
