Introduction

Australia’s cybersecurity landscape is evolving at a pace that few businesses and public-sector organisations can comfortably manage.

It’s a situation marked by three interconnected challenges: a rapidly expanding attack surface, the weaponisation of artificial intelligence (AI), and systemic vulnerabilities in supply chains.

These challenges are made more acute by the explosion of internet-connected devices across households and workplaces. This has dissolved the traditional notion of a secure network perimeter as every device, user, and cloud service has become a potential entry point for attackers.

Compounding this, AI has armed cybercriminals with the ability to create hyper-realistic phishing campaigns, adaptive malware, and attacks that unfold at machine speed. At the same time, the deep integration of digital supply chains means a single breach at a software provider or managed service firm can ripple across thousands of Australian organisations.

Together, these forces present a landscape where legacy, prevention-only security models are no longer sufficient.

From Compliance to Resilience

Government and industry alike acknowledge that simply meeting compliance benchmarks is insufficient. Standards such as the ASD Essential Eight remain vital, but they should be viewed as the baseline rather than the finish line.

Effective resilience requires investment in threat detection, investigation and response (TDIR) capabilities. These are tools and processes that can not only detect a breach but also contain and neutralise it quickly.

This shift echoes principles already embedded in APRA’s Prudential Standard CPS 234, which demands that security capabilities be commensurate with the level of threat. Likewise, the clarification of company directors’ duties under the Corporations Act has elevated cyber risk to a board-level concern, making resilience, rather than simple box-ticking, the true marker of good governance.

Harnessing AI for Defence

If AI is being weaponised by attackers, it must also form part of every organisation’s defensive arsenal. Australian businesses and government agencies will need to adopt AI-driven security platforms capable of processing vast amounts of data, detecting anomalous behaviour, and automating responses in real time.

For the public sector, leading by example will be critical. Federal agencies can demonstrate best practice by integrating AI into their security operations centres (SOCs), reducing analyst fatigue and improving the speed of detection.

Equally important is the cultivation of workforces ready to use these tools. Building skills in data science, security analytics, and AI operations will be essential for both government and industry to manage future threats.

Securing the Digital Supply Chain

The interconnectedness of the economy is also proving a critical vulnerability. To address the systemic risk posed by digital supply chains, Australia must move towards radical transparency and collective defence.

This means incentivising real-time, anonymised threat intelligence sharing across all sectors, not just critical infrastructure. Safe-harbour protections for organisations that share breach data in good faith will be crucial to overcoming legal and reputational fears that currently stifle information sharing.

The Australian government has already laid the groundwork through initiatives like the Cyber Security Partnership Program, but scaling this into a comprehensive national clearinghouse of behavioural threat intelligence would significantly strengthen resilience.

Measuring What Matters

One of the pitfalls of existing cyber policy is its reliance on lagging indicators (such as the number of breaches or cost of cybercrime) which only measure failure after the fact.

A sharper focus on leading indicators that reveal real resilience deliver much more value. These indicators include things such as mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR). These offer a real-time pulse on whether an organisation can see, understand and stop attacks as they unfold.

Beyond detection and response, evaluating the effectiveness of interventions is also key. Superficial adoption of frameworks like the Essential Eight risks creating a false sense of security. Measuring depth and maturity ensures that standards deliver the intended protection.

Addressing the Needs of Vulnerable Sectors

Not all organisations face the same challenges. Not-for-profits, for example, operate under acute resource constraints yet manage highly sensitive data.

For them, government-backed initiatives such as subsidised access to AI-driven security platforms, centralised sector-specific SOCs, and modern security skills training would provide the leverage needed to match larger enterprises in resilience. Without such interventions, a single breach could devastate public trust and cripple vital community services.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face similar resource limitations. Grant programs encouraging the adoption of modern security information and event management (SIEM) systems and behaviour-based analytics could help these businesses detect and neutralise ransomware and credential-based attacks that currently overwhelm their defences.

Taking a Proactive National Posture

Ultimately, Australia’s cyber security strategy must move from reactive defence to proactive resilience. This means embedding threat hunting as a standard business function, focusing on adversary behaviours rather than static signatures, and automating incident response.

The government’s role will be to incentivise this shift through tax breaks, grants, and updated procurement standards that reward organisations investing in AI-driven and behaviour-based defences.

By clearly defining the permissible scope of proactive cyber defence, the government can also remove uncertainty that currently deters industry from adopting advanced measures. Establishing a legal ‘safe harbour’ for good-faith defensive actions will encourage more organisations to hunt, detect and block threats within their networks.

By focusing on measurable outcomes, such as speed of detection and response, rather than compliance checklists, Australia can build a digital economy that is not only innovative and productive, but also secure against the rising tide of cyber threats.