Veterans on guard

Former soldiers first line of defence against welfare hackers

DOZENS of veterans are being enlisted to help protect Australia’s welfare system against online attacks.

Up to 36 former army, navy and air force personnel will be re-skilled as cyber security officers within the Department of Human Services.

“It’s hard to translate military talk into the civilian world,” air force veteran Anton Tereykovskyy told reporters in Canberra yesterday.

“Recognising the skills that veterans bring to the community and translating those skills is quite difficult.”

Mr Tereykovskyy spent close to a decade in the RAAF as a ground security specialist, finishing work last Friday to start his new job in Canberra yesterday.

He will work as a cyber security analyst.

“Unfortunately, we know in the world we live in today those threats are not decreasing, they continue to increase,” Human Services Minister Michael Keenan said.

The government has teamed with veteran employment agency With You With Me to retrain the former service members.

“Veterans make ideal employees,” the minister said.

“They have leadership skills. They have the ability to work as a team.

“They know how to work hard.”

Four of the hand-picked recruits, including Mr Tereykovskyy, started work yesterday, with more to follow in their footsteps over the next three years.

The department sits on what Mr Keenan described as a “treasure trove” of confidential, personal information.

It was cleared by the national audit office as “cyber resilient” last year, meeting the top four mitigation strategies of Australian spy experts.

“I’ve seen up close the professionalism, the dedication, the leadership and teamwork of our highly skilled ADF personnel,” Veterans Affairs Minister Darren Chester said.