The paper’s authors acknowledge that the trials they considered were prone to bias and didn’t take into account inconsistent use of masks.
Much like Climate Change scientific reports, there will always be "experts" around to interpret the data in whatever way you want to hear it. The fact it's in a Murdoch publication should raise suspicion.
Here's the first three links from a "scientific study on use of masks" Google. They would suggest the opposite of what the News Ltd piece says.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
CDC provides credible COVID-19 health information to the U.S.
www.cdc.gov
Surgical masks reduce COVID-19 spread, large-scale study shows
Researchers found that surgical masks impede the spread of COVID-19 and that just a few, low-cost interventions increase mask-wearing compliance.
med.stanford.edu
Largest study on masks and Covid-19 demonstrates their effectiveness in the real world
Testing the NORM program for reducing Covid-19 infections Photo courtesy Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA). While guidance and official policy on masking has evolved over the course of the pandemic
egc.yale.edu