Australia Releases 2023–2030 Cyber Security Strategy — November 22, 2023
The Australian Government unveiled its 2023–2030 Cyber Security Strategy with six cyber shields spanning safe technology, resilient infrastructure, sovereign capabilities, and regional partnerships.
Executive briefing: On Australia published its 2023–2030 Cyber Security Strategy. The plan introduces six “cyber shields” focused on strong citizens and businesses, safe technology, world-class threat sharing, resilient critical infrastructure, sovereign capabilities, and regional partnerships.
Strategy priorities
- Mandatory reporting reforms. The government will streamline cyber incident reporting laws, create a single reporting portal, and harmonise timelines across sectors.
- Critical infrastructure uplift. Investments will expand SLACIP obligations, support threat intelligence sharing, and fund incident response capabilities for essential services.
- Workforce and technology. The strategy allocates funding for skills development, secure-by-design technology incentives, and local cyber industry growth.
Actions for organisations
- Monitor legislative consultations on incident reporting harmonisation and prepare to update Australian regulatory registers.
- Engage in threat-sharing partnerships such as the Joint Cyber Defence Collaborative-equivalent forums and ACSC programmes.
- Assess opportunities to access government grants for capability uplift, particularly in critical infrastructure and regional operations.
Strategic considerations
- Regional cooperation. The strategy emphasises Indo-Pacific partnerships—organisations operating in the region should align playbooks for cross-border incident response.
- Supply chain accountability. Expect increased scrutiny of managed service providers; include Australian-specific clauses in supplier agreements.
- Measurement. The government plans annual action plans—track metrics to demonstrate participation and compliance.
Zeph Tech is helping clients align Australian cyber uplifts with global programmes so reporting and resilience improvements can be evidenced to regulators and customers.