Australia 2020 National Cyber Security Strategy: What it means for SMEs

Australia 2020 National Cyber Security Strategy: What it means for SMEs

The threat of Cyber Security attacks to governments, businesses and individuals is real and this is something that the Australian Government recognised in the release of the Australia’s National Cyber Security Strategy for 2020.

On the 6th August 2020 Australia’s National Cyber Security Strategy was released highlighting Australia’s Cyber Security vision into the future. The strategy describes an investment of $1.67 billion over ten years and shows how seriously Australia is taking Cyber Security, some of these funding initiatives have been announced before the official launch of the strategy.

Australia’s first national Cyber Security was released in 2016 and was criticised for the lack of assistance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The only assistance for SMEs was that they could have their Cyber Security tested by certified penetration testers. This is not the case with the 2020 Australia’s National Cyber Security Strategy. One of the key aspects of the 2020 national strategy is the recognition of the importance of SMEs. The SME aspects of the 2020 Australia’s National Cyber Security strategy covers a number of different areas The strategy focusses on government and large businesses being able to assist SMEs to grow and increase their Cyber Security awareness and capability. The assistance will take the form of offering information, training and toolkits for SMEs in relation to areas such as threat blocking, antivirus, and Cyber Security awareness training.

The Australian Government will offer a dedicated 24/7 Cyber Security advice hotline for SMEs where they can obtain advice about Cyber Security or how to deal with Cyber Security incidents. The role of the Joint Cyber Security Centres (JCSCs) will now include SMEs as part of their remit, this includes the placement of outreach officers to help SMEs. These new outreach officers will help SMEs in capital cities to improve their Cyber Security ability, hopefully, these roles will also cover SMEs in regional areas. There will also be a new tailored Cyber Security Connect and Protect Program to offer SMEs specialised Cyber Security advice from trusted sources (such as Chambers of Commerce and business associations) when it is needed to raise Cyber Security awareness.

The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) will also support the JCSCs by providing new materials for SMEs aimed at helping them improve their Cyber Security by offering a new range of focused Cyber Security step-by-step guides and updated SME focused Cyber Security training materials. The ACSC will also offer new online Cyber Security training courses especially for SMEs.

A key aim of the new government approach is to help SMEs uplift their Cyber Security abilities and practices through the new Cyber Security awareness and training programs.

 

Professor Matt Warren is the Director of the RMIT University Centre for Cyber Security Research & Innovation, and a Professor of Cyber Security.

07 August 2020

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07 August 2020

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