AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Megan Cox As AUSCERT’s Event Coordinator, Megan Cox knows a thing or two about what it’s like to be part of the Australian cyber security community. Reflecting on the positive culture of AUSCERT and the cybersecurity industry, Megan encourages people from all walks of life to become a member. Getting to share this space with great people is what drives Megan’s passion as she shares her voice in the AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories series. What is your favourite highlight about the AUSCERT conference? The conference is a truly unique experience. At its essence, it is a bunch of industry professionals getting together from across Australia and internationally, which is cool to see. I don’t come from a cyber background, so it was interesting for me to learn a lot in a very short amount of time about the industry. I get to meet so many great people who are members, prospective members, and conference attendees, and we get the great opportunity to tell them more about AUSCERT. What attracted you to work for AUSCERT? All of the reviews online regarding AUSCERT as an organisation were highly positive. At the time I was looking for an opportunity like this, and wanted a role that had a nice culture that supported its people, and encouraged staff to have career progression. When I saw that AUSCERT had the backing of UQ, I was like, “Oh, that can only be a good organisation.” What is your most significant highlight from your time working with AUSCERT? Besides the podcast, it’s the little bits and bobs we do on the sides like the monthly wine and cheese nights. I love getting to know everyone in our office in a more casual atmosphere. As a woman in the industry, what would you say to other young professional women wanting to enter the industry and are hesitant about the barriers? What words of encouragement would you give them? I can understand 100% where they’re coming from. I think that of all the male-dominated industries, cyber is probably the most accepting of anyone and everyone. Giving it a go is probably the best advice there is for any profession. If it’s not for you, then it’s not for you, but at least you know you’re not going to sit there in 50 years and wonder “What could have been”?    

Meet Joshua Finley, Data Centre Services Engineer at the Port of Melbourne. Having had personal experience with AUSCERT through website security and later with AUSCERT’s partnership with the Port of Melbourne, Joshua explains why he finds the membership to be well worth his time and money. Read on to find out more about Joshua’s AUSCERT connection. How did you first become involved with AUSCERT? For a long time, I hosted a large variety of websites, and back then, there wasn’t a great deal of cybersecurity resources. I became an AUSCERT member because I was looking for some help. Luckily when I started at the Port of Melbourne, as critical national infrastructure, they were already members and I got to pick up and run with our membership. What are the key benefits you’ve experienced as an AUSCERT member? Meeting the community in Melbourne has been super helpful; being able to network, and additionally receive timely alerts and notifications about the latest threats is very important. Lastly, having a point of contact to reach out to if we ever get into any trouble is reassuring. What advice would you give to someone who isn’t already an AUSCERT member? Simply, become a member and don’t think about it. We use the notification and alarms extensively and I also find the threat feed very useful. Also it’s very helpful having a point of contact to reach out to if we ever find ourselves in trouble. Looking ahead, what do you think the future holds for AUSCERT? There’s a huge space that AUSCERT could play in by extending services to a variety of non-government organisations as these organisations don’t have the footprint to do it themselves. What do you believe sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cybersecurity space? Being non-for-profit, the motivations behind AUSCERT are true and pure – you don’t get this with a commercial organisation. Having a non-commercial partner  

  AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Mark Jackson Viewing the AUSCERT membership as a two-way value exchange, Mark Jackson hopes to put in just as much as he receives working alongside AUSCERT. As the Security Services Lead at MYOB, providing tax, accounting, and other business services to multiple individuals and companies across Australia, Mark’s AUSCERT story spans years. How did you first become involved with AUSCERT, and what motivated you to become a member? I’ve worked in many different organisations and at one in particular, I was prompted to investigate AUSCERT and sign up. Many years later, I’ve crossed multiple organisations and am still a member. What are some of the key benefits and experiences of an AUSCERT membership? The key services that I’ve used across my career are AUSCERT’s threat and vulnerability intelligence, along with takedown services. These services have been invaluable to the workplaces I’ve been a part of providing guidance through various incidents, good advice, and leading us to the right people to workshop a solution. How has AUSCERT evolved over the years, and what changes have you seen in the cybersecurity landscape that have affected the organisation’s work? Back in the day, cybersecurity was only attached to infrastructure. Just about every company needs to mature to deal with today’s challenges. The services AUSCERT offers and how they approach security have changed to match modern threats. What advice would you give to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member? Be sure to lean on the network and stay in contact. Like anything, you get out what you put in. Looking ahead, what do you think the future holds for AUSCERT, and how do you see the organisation continue to play a role in the cybersecurity community? Given the depth and breadth of AUSCERT’s connections within the community, the organisation’s pool of information will be highly valuable. It’s the community that gives AUSCERT a much broader picture of things that might impact individual companies that they might not see otherwise. What do you believe sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cybersecurity space? AUSCERT’s connection to a wider set of industries and partnerships than cybersecurity silos is their most significant drawcard. AUSCERT collates a broader view of the threats that are out there and what’s happening in general.

 AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Dave O’Loan Long-time AUSCERT affiliate and member, Dave O’Loan shares his journey with AUSCERT. As Head of Cyber Relations at the Australian Academic Research Network (AARNet), Dave has had many touchpoints with AUSCERT throughout his career. The sharing of information and diverse collaboration is why Dave continues to support and remain a member of AUSCERT. How did you first get involved with AUSCERT and what motivated you to become a member? AUSCERT is a partner with AARNet within AHECS, the Australian Higher Education Cyber Security Service. Prior to that, I had a long history of working within the academic and research sector. AUSCERT is part of The University of Queensland, linking with AARNet as a shareholder. Therefore, we have a close relationship around securing our sector and broadly sharing information. What are some of the key benefits and experiences of an AUSCERT membership? AARNet gains a lot of benefits through the sharing of threat intelligence, technical indicators, advisories, and bulletins. We also gain a lot from the AUSCERT community, including the conference, and other communities that bring security individuals together to share information effectively. How has AUSCERT evolved over the years, and what changes have you seen in the cybersecurity landscape that have affected the organisation’s work? AUSCERT has evolved by leveraging events like the annual conference and building a strong, information-sharing community. The evolution includes stronger partnerships, distributing information, and bringing different industry verticals together. AUSCERT plays a significant role in ensuring the CERT function is carried out and making sure there’s timely advice available for members. What advice would you give to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member? AUSCERT memberships have numerous benefits, providing access to information, people, skills, and knowledge that an organisation might not have in-house. The membership allows for asking questions, gaining guidance, and receiving information that helps protect systems, networks, and people. AUSCERT’s training contributes to the cybersecurity maturity of an organisation. What do you think the future holds for AUSCERT, and how do you see the organisation continuing to play a vital role in the cybersecurity community? Many people don’t like answering this question, but I see a bright future for AUSCERT. With the evolving cybersecurity landscape, more entities need to be involved in the broader uplift. AUSCERT’s long history of support and leveraging its capabilities will contribute significantly to achieving a more secure nation. How has your membership in AUSCERT impacted your organisation’s overall approach to cybersecurity? The membership has provided unique information sharing, a subscription model with significant value, and the ability to maintain multiple cybersecurity partners. Different partners contribute advice and guidance across various aspects like risk, threat intel, and governance. What do you believe sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cybersecurity space? AUSCERT’s unique nature lies in the shared information it has available through different partners. Maintaining different cybersecurity partners is critical because no single organisation has the knowledge or capacity to understand all risks, threats and governance challenges an organisation could face.

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Trace Borrero Trace Borrero works at the University of Southern Queensland and through the university’s connection to AUSCERT, Trace has developed into a well-trained and active part of the AUSCERT community. From graduate to professional, check out Trace’s AUSCERT story. How did you first become a member of AUSCERT? I came directly out of my degree in cyber security and landed in a role at the University of Southern Queensland. The university were already members, so I became a member. How do you use the AUSCERT service and what benefit do you receive? We use the Malware Information Sharing Platform (MISP) a lot, and we’ve learned to automate from there. When I graduated there was a lot of talk about the intel and IOCs that came from AUSCERT. We would be looking for them in our environment and acting on them if needed. Whenever we’d see widespread phishing, we’d be able to send it to AUSCERT and they would handle it. To me as a graduate, it was magic. I didn’t understand what was going on, but I knew that it was taken care of. Now that I’ve learned the ropes, it’s a plus, because there is a lot of groundwork in the backend that AUSCERT handle for you. How do you think AUSCERT has evolved over the years? I’ve been a member for five years, so I’ve seen lots of change in the direction the industry is heading. AUSCERT is trying to remain cutting edge, which is important. Recently, automation is the new buzzword. Automation is one place that AUSCERT have adapted successfully, preparing their members to automate and thinking about what type of automation that members want. What advice would you give to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member? It’s worth it – one of the best things you could do, is simply attend the conference and see what it’s all about. It’s hard to see AUSCERT’s benefit purely from the website. Meeting AUSCERT’s members, attending events, or just the conference, is a good place to start. What do you think the future holds for AUSCERT? I assume AUSCERT will continue to try and stay cutting edge. They will also continue to look out for their members as best they can, in whatever way that means. What sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cyber security industry? AUSCERT are looking out for you. Obviously, they have their own interests, but their interests are their members. You don’t see that very often, specifically when you look at other vendors. Simply having someone to bounce your ideas off, and then receiving feedback from AUSCERT and its member community is fantastic. To be able to say: “Oh, hey, I’ve seen this phishing email. Has anyone else seen it?” “Oh, yes, we’ve seen it, and these are the other IOCs or other attributes of it.” It’s truly a community of learning and collaboration.

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Peter Degotardi AUSCERT member in the education industry, Peter Degotardi is the Manager of Cyber Security Capability at the University of Technology Sydney. Joining the University in 2015, Peter has benefited from the information his AUSCERT membership provides. Keeping his organisation up-to-date and ahead of the game, Peter’s AUSCERT story is one of community and collaboration. What are some of the key benefits you’ve experienced as an AUSCERT member? The main benefit I receive from AUSCERT is the community and the sense of camaraderie we have. This community is a sight to behold; everyone talks to each other and trusts one another. The information we receive is phenomenal, giving great value out of the membership. Often, we’re alerted to vulnerable hosts before we’re even aware it’s happened. We can’t live without [phishing] site takedown services, along with phishing emails that AUSCERT handles for us. How has AUSCERT evolved over the years? I was involved with AUSCERT before I started in the cyber security sector, and I’ve always dreamed of going to the AUSCERT conference. Initially, AUSCERT was a ‘techie’ organisation but now it’s evolved to helping businesses secure themselves. Although technology is one part of the AUSCERT offering, they now focus on the governance and risk management services. What advice would you give to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member, and why do you believe that membership is valuable for organisations of all sizes and industries? Be ready to ingest a huge amount of information; you’re going to receive a lot. The value is in the information sharing you receive, not just from AUSCERT itself but other members – everyone helps everyone else. What do you think the future holds for AUSCERT? Everything evolves – technology, processes, people, organisations, but no matter what changes, it needs to be secured. I’m looking at AUSCERT to provide timely information to be able to do just that – provide recommendations to stay one step ahead of the baddies. What do you believe sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cyber security space? AUSCERT is Australian born and bred and it has the connections to its equivalents across the world. AUSCERT gives me the information I don’t have readily accessible, which will help us to develop a better security position for the organisation.

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Bek Cheb Hard-working Bek Cheb embodies the heart of AUSCERT’s passion and community and is responsible for keeping the business side of AUSCERT running. As Business Manager, Bek oversees AUSCERT’s events, marketing, communications, and membership. Read on to discover Bek’s fondest AUSCERT moments and where she sees the future of AUSCERT headed. Whilst working at AUSCERT, is there a memorable experience that stands out? Not surprisingly, many of my memorable moments have been at the AUSCERT conference. AUSCERT attracts plenty of big-industry names that I’ve fanned over for years.  To meet these inspirations face-to-face and feel their human compassion is amazing. Adam Spencer is our MC, and each year I still get excited to hang out with Adam for a few days. This year Rachel Tobac, an expert in the world of social engineering, was AUSCERT’s keynote. To have such expertise on stage and learn from them is just magical. What would you say to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member? Every organisation should become an AUSCERT member and I’m not just saying that because I work for AUSCERT. I understand the pressure there is on individuals and businesses to understand cyber security. Knowing that you’ve got a community ready to assist you, let alone the value in the individual services, builds confidence. There are many obvious services that AUSCERT are known for such as security bulletins and early warning SMS, but recently phishing takedowns are requested more often; where AUSCERT acts as an extension of your team. Where do you see AUSCERT going in the future? Thinking about AUSCERT’s future is thrilling – I think we have a lot of opportunities. Because we’re not owned by the government, the best part of AUSCERT is our agility. We can grow and change to whatever our members need us to be – so the growth opportunities for AUSCERT are endless. Education is going to play a big role in our future, innovating how we can expand our courses and offerings. There’s a high demand for new skill sets and growth within our industry, so I can’t wait to see our numbers grow. What sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cyber security space? Every organisation needs to consider their network of cyber security partners. There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to protection, and you can’t put all your eggs in one basket. It’s important to have a layered approach by ensuring you’ve got different people representing your business on different issues. AUSCERT is that important piece of the puzzle, where you won’t find a sales pitch. We’re not trying to make an extra buck in our sales targets that month – instead we’re part of the cyber security community.

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Peter Newman Utilising AUSCERT’s services in the gambling industry, Peter Newman has a long history with AUSCERT. Initially working for University of Queensland (UQ), Peter Newman is now the Head of Threat at The Lottery Corporation. Providing insight into AUSCERT’s services and predicting its future, check out Peter’s AUSCERT connection story. What motivated your organisation to become a member? The Lottery Corporation is only a year old, recently splitting from Tabcorp. As a flow-on organisation of Tabcorp we utilise the same services. As Tabcorp were already AUSCERT members, we decided to continue the same framework with an AUSCERT membership for The Lottery Corporation. As an AUSCERT member, what are the key benefits? The Lottery Corporation use the bulletin service, which is a primary feed into our vulnerability management program. We also use AUSCERT’s seven-day feed for malware URLs. With this resource, we look at the domains our users are visiting, and if that domain is listed as a malicious URL, we investigate further. How has AUSCERT evolved over the years? When I began with AUSCERT, they were focused on incident response. Currently, AUSCERT have been developing its threat intelligence resources and feeds associated with that. Another aspect that AUSCERT has done well over the years, is maintaining relationships with other certs around the world – enabling them to become highly efficient at phishing take downs. What advice would you give to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member? Understanding what AUSCERT can do for you is a challenge; a lot of the people that become members only use one or two services. Knowing everything AUSCERT can do for your business is the best advice I can give. What do you think the future holds for AUSCERT? AUSCERT will need to continually pivot even though its staples are solid. As a community organisation, AUSCERT must keep adjusting to the community itself and how it changes. I predict AUSCERT will continue to grow in the threat intelligence area and more in education. What sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cyber security space? Being vendor-agnostic specifically sets AUSCERT apart – everybody in cyber security is trying to sell you something. Although AUSCERT is selling you something, it’s in a not-for-profit method. Due to this, AUSCERT can leverage their community to feedback on itself.

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – David Stockdale With a professional and ethical approach to delivering cyber security throughout Australia, the AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories would be incomplete without sitting down with current AUSCERT Director, David Stockdale. Praising AUSCERT’s trust and influential community, David’s insight into what sets our organisation apart is a heart-warming read. How did you first become involved with AUSCERT, and what motivated you to apply for your position? The Director of AUSCERT position was included in a job that I applied for at the University of Queensland. It was the area I least understood in the role, and yet it’s become the piece I adore most. How do you think AUSCERT has evolved over the years? What do you think our future holds? AUSCERT has experienced plenty of change in the last three decades – 30 years ago, AUSCERT was one of the first computer emergency response teams in the world. What AUSCERT provided then was unique, but there are now many big players in the sector. We’ve evolved to provide new and niche offerings, that other companies are not able to provide. As AUSCERT is a not-for-profit organisation, we’re not government-aligned nor commercial, we’re able to establish an element of trust. This trust is our superpower and means we can provide services others can’t. What are the key benefits of being a part of the AUSCERT community? AUSCERT transcends more than just its members, age, services and employees; it’s much bigger than that. To be part of an organisation that aims to provide good services and lift the security of our community – is a fantastic cause. What advice would you give to a prospective AUSCERT member? Do it! Looking at the low cost of our services, it’s easy to assume that they are not worth a lot. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Once you start using AUSCERT and leveraging our offerings, you’ll find there’s value-upon-value-upon-value. That said, the real value of being an AUSCERT member is not necessarily the services, but the community we create, whether it’s through our conference, or events. We connect sectors together, and it’s this quality that separates us from others. When you’re an AUSCERT member, you become part of a trusted community. What do you believe sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cybersecurity space? It’s AUSCERT’s not-for-profit qualities – we aren’t aligned to any vendors so we are, in some ways, a trusted free spirit. This trust is what sets AUSCERT apart; and we do the best cybersecurity conference in Australia, without a doubt. AUSCERT, Happy 30th Birthday! You are the best organisation I’ve ever known, and I’m so proud to be part of it.  

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Heath Marks Partnering with AUSCERT for 13 years, Heath Marks is the CEO of the Australian Access Federation (AAF), which provides the National Authentication Framework for Australian Higher Education Research. Assisting the Federal Government’s National Research Infrastructure Strategy, Heath leads development in the trust and identity sector. Through a mutual partnership with AUSCERT, Heath shares the benefits of aligning with cooperative communities like ours. What is your biggest takeaway from AUSCERT’s service? Working in the trust and identity environment, we are naturally linked to cyber security. Being aligned with AUSCERT’s deliverables and leveraging their services is highly important to us. Additionally, joining the community and further advancing the cyber security industry as a national strategy is considered invaluable to us at AAF. An initiative that the AAF and AUSCERT have partnered together from the beginning is the establishment of the Australasian Higher Education Cyber Security Service. Together with the entire AHECS group, we collectively advance cyber security initiatives within the sector. How long have you been an AUSCERT member? The AAF have been AUSCERT members from the very beginning.  We began with the certificate service and later continued that relationship throughout the years. AUSCERT provide training, support, engagement and a number of useful services that we enjoy engaging with as a team. What advice would you give to those considering to become an AUSCERT member? Why do you think the AUSCERT membership is valued in organisations? It’s critical that we’re part of initiatives like AUSCERT A key distinction of AUSCERT is that it’s a service delivered for the sector, by the sector. AUSCERT is a shared, cost-effective service. The membership costs are very low, for the value you receive. There’s a plethora of cyber security services available, the majority of which are expensive and often questionable. Being part of a passionate community, catered to sharing intelligence and knowledge on cyber security is vital and important – it’s the reason why we’re AUSCERT members. As AUSCERT turns 30, do you want to add anything else? Congratulations, AUSCERT, for making 30 years! AUSCERT is an integral part of the sector and we appreciate everything you do in supporting us, delivering what we need for our customers, our colleagues, and our daily jobs. Thank you very much.

The recent escalation of tensions between Israel and Hamas has not only led to a surge in physical violence but has also raised concerns about the potential for increased cyber-attacks. As the conflict intensifies, Australia as a close ally of Israel has been targeted by a threat actor group named ‘IRoX Team’ [1][2][3]. According to emerging reports, Australia has been identified as a specific target for potential cyber-attacks on October 25 [1]. These attacks are expected to involve Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) techniques [2][3]. While the credibility of the reports is unknown to us, we strongly recommend that our members enhance their vigilance and situational awareness during this period of uncertainty. We also encourage our members to practice good cyber hygiene to ensure the security of their systems and promptly report any suspicious activities or information to the relevant authorities for further investigation. Reference: [1] https://cyberknow.substack.com/p/irox-team-declares-global-hacktivist [2] https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/oct/11/israel-hamas-war-cyber-attacks-cyberx [3] https://cybercx.com.au/blog/hamas-israel-conflict/

AUSCERT 30 Years 30 Stories – Duke Erdenebat One of AUSCERT’s security analysts, Duke Erdenebat, shares how AUSCERT enables him to make positive contributions to the cybersecurity industry. Duke’s day-to-day work involves writing code, scripting, automation and a multitude of services that assist AUSCERT members. Inspired by AUSCERT’s goodwill, check out Duke’s AUSCERT connection story. Within your time in your role, what are the key benefits you’ve experienced? The main benefit has undoubtedly been AUSCERT’s not-for-profit status, with a focus on its members. This focus doesn’t just end with members but extends to the whole of Australia and the globe. We attempt to reach people who are in danger and try to enrich them. What do you envision for AUSCERT within the next 5 to 10 years? The current AUSCERT service is fantastic. But recently, we’re trying to integrate Malware Information Sharing Platform (MISP) in an attempt to share more information. This is an area where individuals can share threat activity and threat actors, helping others find compromise indicators. In the future, I believe our MISP integration will be strong enough to encourage members to check threats themselves. What advice would you give to someone considering becoming an AUSCERT member? Those considering an AUSCERT membership should research what AUSCERT services could benefit them and contact our team directly. Simply look through AUSCERT’s services – there are educational programs and plenty more – and see what AUSCERT is doing differently from other security companies. What does the AUSCERT community mean to you? AUSCERT has been around for 30 years – which means the community is robust. There are plenty of people who know about AUSCERT, and who AUSCERT know personally. If there’s a new source of information or incident, there’s open communication and sharing of that information, which makes it a great community to be a part of. What do you believe sets AUSCERT apart from other organisations in the cyber security space? AUSCERT has utmost respect for its members and there’s open communication of information, through Slack channels, MISP events and emails.