National Cyber Security Coordinator

Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking at Public Sector Network2nd Annual Australian Cyber Security Showcase. It was great to discuss the importance of public-private partnerships and how these collaborative efforts can enhance Australia’s cyber security. By working together, we can: ✅ Improve our understanding of cyber threats ✅ Develop effective preventative measures ✅ Collaborate on projects and awareness campaigns ✅ Share skills and resources And, of course, we talked about what every Australian can do to be more cyber secure. After all, cyber is everybody's business.

Scam-free is the way to be! Stay ahead of scams with these three actions: ✅ create strong, unique passphrases for every account ✅ set up multi-factor authentication ✅ regularly install software updates Head to actnowstaysecure.gov.au to learn more

Today marks 100 Days as The National Cyber Security Coordinator. But it’s only just the beginning… Let’s continue to make Australia a leader in cyber security.

Earlier this week the National Office of Cyber Security was made aware of a cyber incident impacting resources company Northern Minerals, involving publication of data on the dark web.   I have since met with Northern Minerals to discuss the incident and to offer the Australian Government’s assistance in the coordination of its response.   As advised in their statement to the ASX, Northern Minerals was first made aware of the incident in March this year. It has been managing its own response to the incident since that time, including the process of notifying impacted individuals.

❗ ALERT ❗ Unauthorised access attempts against Australian instances of Snowflake have been detected. Australian organisations who utilise Snowflake should reset credentials for active accounts, disable non-active accounts, enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), and review user activity. Read the alert here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gdCUHn9C

Think you're cyber secure? Let's find out! Test your cyber security knowledge with the Act Now, Stay Secure cyber quiz. Take the quiz now here: https://lnkd.in/gDC7Y6_7

Today, I was advised by Ticketek of a cyber incident impacting Ticketek Australia and its account holder information. Ticketek is a different company to Ticketmaster, which is a subsidiary of Live Nation Entertainment. The Australian Signals Directorate and Australian Federal Police are also aware of the incident. I welcome the timely approach taken by Ticketek to notifying its affected customers. Ticketek advises that customer names, dates of birth and email addresses may have been impacted. Cyber security is a shared responsibility for all of us. It is vital that Australians and Australian businesses are alert to the threat of identity fraud. This means using a strong and unique passphrase for each separate online account you have to make it harder for cybercriminals to access your sensitive data. There are simple actions all Australians can take to protect their online information: - Set up multi-factor authentication to add an extra layer of security to your online accounts. - Install software updates regularly to keep your devices secure - Create strong and unique passphrases that are over 14 characters long and use 4 or more random words. Specific enquiries relating to this incident should be directed to Ticketek. As my team learns more about the incident, I will keep Australians updated.

Mark your calendars: the Department of Home Affairs is bringing the Critical Infrastructure Security Excellence Workshops to every state and territory capital city from May through November this year – kicking off last week in Adelaide. These workshops will feature key government and industry speakers, panel discussions and interactive activities, as well as providing networking opportunities. They will focus on an all-hazards risk management approach to support Australian critical infrastructure entities. Register your interest in attending 👉 https://lnkd.in/gkzunAPB

The Australian Government is continuing its response to the cyber incident that has impacted MediSecure. We are aware a dataset purporting to be from the MediSecure breach has been advertised for sale on a dark web marketplace, along with a sample of the data. Australians should not go looking for this data. Accessing stolen sensitive or personal information on the dark web only feeds the business model of cybercriminals. All Australian Government agencies involved in the response are aware of the advertisement. Under joint standing arrangements Operation Aquila, the Australian Federal Police and Australian Signals Directorate are supporting this response. While this is an unwelcome development, I want to again assure Australians that if individuals are at risk of serious harm through the publication of their information, then we will work with MediSecure to make sure that individuals are appropriately informed, so they may take steps to protect themselves from any further risk to their personal information. We are working with MediSecure to verify the data that has been posted online. I am urgently working with relevant government agencies and relevant health industry bodies on ensuring that medical practitioners are advised of actions they need to take. We believe at this stage that this is a relatively small group that has been affected. As previously advised, paper and electronic prescriptions continue to operate as normal. People can continue to access medicines, doctors can still prescribe and pharmacists can still dispense as usual. Further advice relating to this incident has been published at https://lnkd.in/gUEe6_Ar

The Australian Government continues to work with former prescription delivery service provider MediSecure, in relation to a cyber incident affecting the company. A web page is now live to provide further information and advice for individuals and health care providers. We will update it throughout the incident; please visit this page at https://lnkd.in/gUEe6_Ar Australians can be assured that both paper and electronic prescriptions continue to operate as normal. People can continue to access medicines, doctors can still prescribe and pharmacists can still dispense as usual. On the incident itself, it is important to remember that the response is still in preliminary stages and information is still being obtained. We remain focused on protecting Australians and further updates will continue to be provided as the response progresses.