AustCyber, like many organisations, is taking proactive steps over the next couple of months in relation to our events and the way our team continues to operate as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.
As you would have seen via our social channels earlier this week, AISA and AustCyber have decided to postpone our event in Darwin today for the health and safety of staff and attendees. We are working with AISA to schedule a new date to spend time with the cyber ecosystem in the Top End.
We have cancelled the six remaining events comprising our AustCyber AllStars national tour with CISO Lens Founder James Turner. This included events in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Launceston, Canberra and Brisbane.
- Download a digital copy of the CISO Lens Benchmark 2019.
- Read the 2019 Update to Australia’s Cyber Security Sector Competitiveness Plan.
Our plan is to replace the national tour with a live-streamed webinar, which will allow you to interact with James and I in real-time and ask questions about the documents mentioned above. Further information about a date and time will be released shortly.
For the Canberra visit of the AustCyber AllStars, we had also planned the next GovPitch, which we have partnered with the Australian Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources, along with Stone & Chalk, to deliver. This has been postponed until late August/early September this year, and Expressions of Interest for pitching and exhibiting will now be extended until 31 May.
For Adelaide and Launceston, we will be replacing the AustCyber AllStars events with AustCyber Sessions, which will still give Australian cyber security companies in these locations the opportunity for direct consultation with me, most likely through teleconference. Details will be provided shortly on how to book a session.
More broadly for AustCyber, we now have an emphasis on virtual, rather than face-to-face interactions. For the foreseeable future, AustCyber staff will not be travelling domestically for non-essential travel or internationally at all until further notice.
Your local AustCyber Node Manager will be following the advice of their local health authorities on their availability to work from their Node location. Please contact them if you have any questions about their working arrangements, though there will be preference placed on telecon/video conference meetings.
These policies and procedures have been implemented to limit the potential for our team members to be exposed to the COVID-19 virus or inadvertently further spread the virus, and in turn, help reduce impacts on increasingly stretched health services in our communities. I trust you understand our reasons and appreciate your support for these adjustments.
Now, more than ever, good cyber practices are crucial. I’d like to point you in the direction of some fantastic resources that can help your organisation ensure cyber security is maintained with remote working:
- The Australian Cyber Security Centre has compiled a list of good cyber security measures and proactive strategies to protect staff and vulnerable members of our community. Access the list here.
- CISO Lens has compiled tips, tricks and traps from current and recent leaders of enterprise cyber security teams. Access the article here.
- Cynch Security understands that keeping your small business ‘cyber fit’ while working remotely during an emergency is crucial. Access the resources here.
We will continue to progress with ‘business as usual’, albeit in a different way for the moment, to champion for the development of a vibrant and globally competitive cyber security sector. Our sector has much to offer in the everyday – but we shine in circumstances that call for community resilience.
Kind regards,
Michelle Price
CEO of AustCyber
