Building Australia’s collective strength in the battle against cyber crime will be a key aim of the new Australian Cyber Collaboration Centre, to be established at Lot Fourteen next year.
At a recent industry update held at Lot Fourteen, participants were told that the centre would support new and established businesses to launch new products and services into global markets, provide test facilities for new products and services, and training for all levels of the cyber security workforce.
A report by Australia’s CSIRO scientific research organisation found that Australia’s small cybersecurity industry is expected to grow from around 20,000 workers today to 31,600 by 2026 and triple its revenue to $6 billion.
The report also states that “the majority of Australian organisations currently lack the capacity to employ large internal cyber security teams.”
The Australian Cyber Collaboration Centre has been designed to tap into this need for more cybersecurity experts and to take advantage of the growing revenue in this sector.
The centre will include a Cyber Launchpad, made up of a Cyber Academy and Cyber Test Range. The Cyber Academy will train all levels of the cyber workforce, raise awareness in high schools, and provide formal training at the technical, professional and C-suite level.
The academy will leverage existing training material from a number of organisations, including from local and overseas universities, but will also develop specific training courses where gaps in the market are identified.
The Cyber Test Range will allow organisations to carry out security testing of equipment or network configurations, with the security of knowing that their production networks will be safe from interference. It will offer a range of tools and skilled operators that most SA companies would otherwise not be able to access. It will also provide a mix of internet facing and isolated networks for local cyber startups to showcase their tools to their fullest in a safe environment.
The Australian Cyber Security Collaboration Centre will help products and services get to market by provide a capability for businesses, researchers and government to collaborate, and provide an environment for certification and standards-based testing.
The centre is expected to be fully operational by July 2020. The South Australian state government has signed memorandums of understanding for its operation with national security agencies and universities as well as Optus, Symantec and Dtex Systems.
The centre will also be supported by the Cyber Security Co-Operative Research Centre, the Defence Science and Technology Group, the University of Adelaide, the University of South Australia, Flinders University, the SA office for Cyber Security, ICT and Digital Government, the Australian Cyber Security Growth Network, TAFE SA and Mitre.
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