The Australian government is set to develop a revised cybersecurity strategy centered around building six “cyber shields” aimed at fortifying the nation’s defenses against cyber threats. Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil outlined this strategy during the AFR Cyber Summit.
The first shield focuses on raising awareness among citizens and businesses about cybersecurity, emphasizing their role in self-protection.
World-class cybersecurity nation by 2030
The second shield involves setting a minimum cybersecurity standard for digital products and enforcing secure-by-design principles.The third shield aims to create a world-class threat sharing and threat blocking system, facilitating real-time exchange of threat intelligence between the government and businesses to thwart cyber threats before harm occurs.
The fourth shield pertains to improving the cybersecurity posture of critical infrastructure, including government-owned infrastructure.The remaining two shields focus on enhancing domestic cybersecurity capabilities, particularly skills development, and establishing global alliances for coordinated action and resilience-building.
Further details about these “cyber shields” will be provided when the revised cybersecurity strategy is released later this year. The government aims to make Australia a world-class cybersecurity nation by 2030, with a particular focus on addressing immediate cybersecurity challenges in the coming years.