UQ’s Australian Computer Emergency Response Team (AusCERT) is part of an exciting new initiative that aims to protect the higher education sector from cyber security threats.
AusCERT has joined forces with the Council of Australasian Directors of Information Technology (CAUDIT) and Australia’s Academic and Research Network (AARNet) to create the Australasian Higher Education Cybersecurity Service (AHECS).
These three organisations are working together to address the industry’s unique cyber security challenges, with an aim to develop coordinated services that are tailored to the Australasian higher education and research sectors.
The cyber security landscape is ever-changing, and universities require a mature understanding and approach to deal with increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. The AHECS initiative will span institutions to build group strength and a trusted community through engagement, advocacy, and support.
AHECS plans to develop training programs for all knowledge levels, from introduction, right through to specialist courses. They aim to cover topics including social engineering attacks, information security standards, incident planning and response, security automation and digital forensics.
In addition to training, AHECS will engage with the community, government and vendors to provide advocacy and advisory services through reporting, research, consultancy and thought leadership. AHECS also hopes to provide coordinated support to institutions by developing a security operations centre that would detect, analyse, respond to and report on cyber security incidents.
The organisation is still in its early stages, with more updates to come as AHECS works to coordinate the higher education cyber security landscape.
