Cyber Degree Apprenticeships Report

Australia needs an experienced ‘head and hand’ cyber security workforce – professionals who can apply critical analysis and problem-solving while implementing practical skills and techniques to fend off cyber criminals. Cyber degree apprenticeships would provide industry with a pipeline of skilled cyber security professionals to protect businesses from cyber threats. Download the Cyber Degree Apprenticeships Report

Cyber Security and Scams Policy Position

Cyberattacks and scams are a growing threat to business. This is why the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has produced this Cyber Security and Scams Policy Position, which contains 24 pragmatic game-changers (recommendations) to protect small, medium and family businesses from cyber criminals. Download the Cyber Security and Scams Policy Position

How will Australia become the most cyber secure nation by 2030?

Throughout 2023, the Victorian Chamber successfully advocated to the Federal Government for bold policy changes that protect businesses from cyber threats. Since the launch of the Government's 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy, we have tracked 19 policy wins – 12 of our game-changers fully adopted and seven partially.

Key

 Fully adopted
 Partially adopted
 Not adopted

Governments need to implement bold cyber policies

Game-changers

1	Cyber Health Clinics Establish industry-led Cyber Health Clinics to provide local, face-to-face solutions to uplift business cyber security with trust.
2	Australian Cyber Security Council Establish an Australian Cyber Security Council to set professional standards and ethics in the cyber industry.
3	Cyber Safe Score Establish a Cyber Safe Score that rates the level of cyber security maturity of businesses and any of their commercial products and services to boost competitiveness and secure supply chains.
4	Partnerships with industry associations Partner with industry associations to run organic social media campaigns on the latest scams and cyber security prevention measures for business.
5	Monthly cyber security training Fund industry-led educational trainings on cyber security to uplift business cyber maturity.
6	Incentives for business Incentivise businesses (e.g., through tax rebates, grant programs) to improve their cyber security defences to uphold employee and employer livelihoods.
7	Cyber KPIs Set clear cyber security KPIs so that businesses know what targets to strive to reach by 2030.
8	Tokenisation Tokenise personal data to prevent businesses from collecting personal information and limit the opportunity for information theft and extortion.
9	Information security frameworks Harmonise information security frameworks across all states and territories in Australia so that businesses only have to abide by one standard process.
10	Best-practice technology Adopt best-practice technology (e.g., IPv6) to ensure Australia has strong technical foundations to continually uplift business cyber security.
11	State Cyber Security Minister Appoint a Cyber Security Minister to the Victorian Government to ensure there is a dedicated focus on uplifting cyber security at a state level.

Cyber security tertiary courses require extensive practical work experience

Game-changers

12	Apprenticeship training model Adopt a cyber security apprenticeship training model to give the next generation of cyber security professionals the practical work experience they need to directly enter the workforce.
13	Incentives for employment of apprentices Incentivise businesses to take on cyber apprentices to provide the next generation of cyber security professionals with the skills to uphold industry’s cyber defences.
14	Cyber security education in schools Incorporate cyber security education into school curriculum to uplift students’ cyber hygiene best practices, enabling them to provide cyber assistance to their parents who are often small business owners.
15	Base-level cyber security certification Establish a base-level certification for cyber professionals to ensure minimum knowledge and experience across the industry.
16	Cyber professional registry Establish a registry of qualified and certified cyber professionals so businesses know who to trust when they harden their defences or have a cyber incident.

Financial institutions must invest in more secure technologies

Game-changers

17	Multi-factor authentication (MFA) Make MFA mandatory across the banking industry for large transactions to reduce fraud and protect businesses.
18	Anti-competitive legislation Relax anti-competitive and privacy legislation, in certain instances, to allow the banking industry to collaborate to detect, prevent and destruct scams and other fraudulent activity.
19	Innovative technologies Encourage banks to implement the latest cyber security technologies (e.g., PayID, facial ID) to keep businesses and consumers secure.
20	Scam prevention standards Through a Cyber Security Score, encourage minimum scam prevention standards across the banking industry (e.g., dynamic CVCs, no unsolicited links in text messages) to stop scammers from imitating banks and other businesses.
21	Complexity of notification Simplify the notification process to government of a cyber security breach and streamline the reporting process into one central agency.

Digital devices and software must be secure by default 

Game-changers

22	Secure by Default Make Secure by Default the industry standard for all digital devices, software and apps so that businesses have to opt-out of the highest-level security settings instead of opt-in.
23	Vendor liability Hold vendors accountable for scam ads on their platforms and apply penalties if they allow fraudulent material to circulate online.
24	SMS registry Limit how many SIM cards individuals can buy to prevent bad actors from sending illegitimate messages imitating sender IDs.

Further your cyber learning

Small Business Cyber Security Checklist Not only can an attack have a financial impact on your business but it can also damage reputation, disrupt essential services and drive away customers. Download our checklist for tips on how to protect your business and customers from cybercrime. Download the checklist

CyberSimple Starter – Self-paced Learning Take our short course on cyber security and learn how to protect your business’s assets and online information, how to identify cyber scams and malicious software and where to get resources to uplift your cyber security maturity. Complete this e-learning module

Cyber security tips