Australia is preparing to establish a new cybersecurity industry advisory board to bolster the Commonwealth Cyber Uplift Plan, announced Lieutenant General Michelle McGuiness, the National Cybersecurity Coordinator. The board, expected to be appointed in the coming months, will consist of prominent industry providers and cybersecurity experts. This move aims to strengthen public-private partnerships and enhance the government’s cyber resilience as part of the 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy.
The Commonwealth Cyber Uplift Plan is designed to elevate government cyber maturity and safeguard IT systems against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. At the King and Wood Mallesons Digital Future Summit 2024, McGuiness highlighted the board’s role in working closely with the industry to advance the government’s cybersecurity objectives. This initiative underscores a key theme in her first six months: improving collaboration between the government and private sector.
Despite these proactive measures, a recent progress update from the Home Affairs Department revealed that three out of five action items related to uplifting public sector cybersecurity have either seen limited progress or have not yet commenced. The new advisory board will be instrumental in addressing these gaps and ensuring that the government meets or exceeds its cyber protection standards for critical infrastructure.
The advisory board’s formation follows the dissolution of a previous Cybersecurity Industry Advisory Committee in 2022, which was chaired by former Telstra CEO Andrew Penn. A temporary expert board, including Penn and other notable figures, had been advising the Albanese government’s cybersecurity strategy. The new board is expected to build on these efforts and drive forward the development of automated threat-blocking capabilities and other critical cybersecurity initiatives.
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