The best and brightest from across the South Australian cyber industry have come together at the Defence Cyber Security Forum to help businesses build cyber resilience and enhance their defence supply chain prospects.
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The event, hosted by Defence SA in collaboration with AustCyber (SA Node) and the Australian Cyber Collaboration Centre (A3C), is aimed at SMEs with an interest in defence industries so they can better manage the risk of cyber attack.
Industry heard from notable keynote speakers including Premier Steven Marshall; Kim Scott, chair of the A3C board; and Michelle Price, chief executive of AustCyber, who provided an update on the latest national and state cyber security initiatives, while providing information to help businesses build cyber resilience to better position themselves within defence supply chains.
Defence SA chief executive Richard Price said cyber security is critical to industry growth in South Australia, "We are positioning South Australia as a global leader in the cyber and defence industries.
"Defence and cyber are some of our fastest growing industries, and we need to ensure that we build greater resilience within local industry so they are equipped to contribute to global supply chains."
Chair of A3C Kim Scott said all organisations are a target to hackers, in particular SMEs who don’t necessarily have the resources to adequately protect themselves from attack.
"Defence primes clearly need to protect themselves from cyber threats, therefore if an SME wishes to engage in the supply chain of the defence primes they must prove their cyber credentials to be more resilient to cyber attacks," Scott said.
"The A3C can provide practical guidance and cost effective solutions for SMEs to create this cyber resilience."
The forum explored the requirements for ensuring a cyber-resilient supply chain for major defence projects, as well as the importance of cyber security in supporting the economy more broadly.
Participants also gained greater insight into Defence supply chain criteria and requirements and receive advice on how to be cyber secure at a time where cyber attacks are more frequent and sophisticated.
Price added, "More broadly, we need to be prepared to protect our businesses, governments and essential services from the growing number of sophisticated cyber attacks by ensuring we have the right people, skills and infrastructure in place."