Security issues start at home

NOT everyone has been a fan of the Australian government’s AUKUS deal with the US and the UK.

The government claims the deal, which involves acquiring nuclearpowered submarines, was necessary to further strengthen the country’s security. But it comes at a price.

The deal is estimated to cost Australian taxpayers $268bn to $368bn between now and the mid 2050s.

While defence spending is without a doubt a necessary evil, submarines do little to address another quite real and effective threat – one that lies in the realm of cybersecurity.

The Addy reports today that hackers could leverage the Commonwealth Games to access our data.

According to Aamir Qutub, a member of the Geelong Authority which advises state government on development and investment in central Geelong, small businesses “don’t have the knowledge to be ready” for cyber attacks that may come as a result of the 2026 event.

Mr Qutub, who is also the founder of software company Enterprise Monkey, said that hackers could look to exploit the global attention that the Games would bring to Geelong.

Recent history is scattered with reports of high-profile cyber attacks around the world.

Australian tech unicorn Canva was attacked in 2019, affecting about 137 million users. Cybercriminals breached Optus’s internal network last year, compromising personal information of up to 9.8 million customers.

And, in 2018, the Australian National University (ANU) fell victim to a highly sophisticated cyber attack during which criminals accessed sensitive information of more than 200,000 students dating as far back as 19 years.

Our cybersecurity can no longer be ignored.

It is essential businesses take steps to protect themselves.

But the government also has a role to play in addressing this issue far beyond providing support and resources to small businesses.

Otherwise it will be our details and privacy, not submarines, that end up under water.