Australia Plans A$400M Cybersecurity Investment

The Australian Government has earmarked A$400 million to invest on cybersecurity projects, as it believes cyber warfare to be the new “weapon of choice.”

“The Government is deeply committed to cybersecurity. It is combining initiatives into a coordinated, whole-of-government strategy, which includes A$400 million worth of investment to support cybersecurity capabilities,” according to Australian Defense Cyber Industry Capability Report.

In the last week of March, Japan announced plans to invest ¥25.6 billion ($237.12 million) in the cyber domain this year, which includes developing an Artificial Intelligence-based system to counter cyber-attacks. The system will autonomously detect malicious e-mails, judge the level of threat using AI and respond against cyber-attack, the ministry said.

Cyber defense will also be a prominent beneficiary of the A$730 million Next Generation Technologies Fund. The report outlines how countries are now enforcing mandatory cybersecurity standards, such as incident detection and reporting, audits, and more secure defence acquisition. However, there is still work to be done in terms of securing weapon systems, protecting legacy components, and bridging skills gaps.

“The Australian Defense Force (ADF) aims to enhance the cyber resilience of its deployed forces. Training programs will enhance the capabilities of the ADF’s cyber workforce. New cyber-defense roles will be created, tasked with protecting cyber networks. Offensive cyber warfare capabilities, deception and disinformation will become key elements in the ADF’s cyber defense capabilities," the report said.

Aussie companies named in the report include Airlock Digital, archTIS, Cipherpoint, Dekko Secure, Fifth Domain, Huntsman Security, Ionize, Kinetic IT, Nuix, Penten, ProvenDB, Quintessence Labs, ResponSight, Sapien Cyber, Seer Security, Trellis Data, Vault Cloud, and With You With Me.