BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA, 8 OCTOBER 2024:ย AUSCERT,ย Australia’s first computer emergency response team (CERT), and one of the oldest CERTs in the world, today announces the launch of its new Tabletop Exercise Service (TTX) to help organisations test their preparedness in managing and responding to a variety of incidents.
AUSCERT General Manager, Dr Ivano Bongiovanni, says the new TTX service enables organisations of all sizes to focus on critical aspects of cyber incident response, business continuity and crisis management and uplift capabilities.
“Effective incident response is about more than having a playbook. Custom-designed TTXs meet the specific objectives and requirements of businesses of all sizes. Participants from the entire business all have a key role to play in the exercises. ย We engage operational staff, cybersecurity professionals, IT leaders, marketing and communication teams, and middle and senior executives. The diversity in participation ensures a comprehensive understanding of how different roles interact, the responsibilities and how to coordinate a cohesive and swift organisational wide response during an incident,” Dr. Bongiovanni says.
AUSCERT’s highly skilled facilitators guide participants through realistic scenarios. “We prompt them to consider aspects such as roles, responsibilities, coordination, and decision-making. And because these exercises are discussion-based, they do not require the deployment of equipment or other resources. The focus is on fostering a collaborative environment where participants can openly discuss and refine their strategies in incident response,” he explains.
Preparedness is key to effective incident response. TTXs provide a valuable opportunity for organisations to test and validate playbooks, engage their teams, understand the importance of coordination and stakeholder management and build a culture of continuous improvement. TTXs are a practical and effective way to enhance organisational readiness in the event the organisation must handle a cybersecurity incident.
Dr. Bongiovanni says, “During the high stakes of a real-world incident, making the best decisions requires planning and practice. TTXs enable participants to develop the muscle memory they need so they can respond to difficult situations from a position of experience and with the confidence of having planned and tested responses.”
AUSCERT’s new TTX service is available to organisations of all sizes Australia-wide. As a not-for-profit, AUSCERT makes this important service accessible to smaller organisations, many of whom could not have afforded access to this expertise in the past.
To find out more and register your organisation for a TTX, please visit: https://auscert.org.au/services/risk-compliance/ย
ABOUT AUSCERT
AUSCERT was founded in 1993 in response to an Australian university student hacking a computer system at NASA. This breach triggered a chain reaction to improve information security. In the early 1990’s three Australian Universities came together and formed AUSCERT – the central source for information security and protection. Today, The University of Queensland has embraced AUSCERT as part of their organisation.
AUSCERT is a not-for-profit, member funded organisation based at The University of Queensland. It provides support to businesses during cyber security incidents, threat intelligence services and ongoing education and development programs.
AUSCERT’s passionate team of leading cyber security experts deliver 24/7 service to more than 500 members spanning education and training, financial and insurance services, information, media and telecommunications and other key sectors alongside a range of comprehensive tools to strengthen cyber security strategic defences.
