Search
Close this search box.

We are creating some awesome events for you. Kindly bear with us.

New Zealand Establishes Lead Operational Cyber Security Agency

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

In response to the evolving landscape of cyber threats and the increasing importance of safeguarding its digital interests, the Government of New Zealand is taking measures to bolster its cybersecurity capabilities. Recognising the criticality of a robust and integrated approach, the government is establishing a lead operational cyber security agency, which will serve as a centralised hub for cybersecurity efforts.

The envisioned agency aims to play a pivotal role in strengthening the nation’s cyber resilience and preparedness by coordinating and optimising cybersecurity strategies across various sectors and government entities. By bringing together the expertise and resources of multiple stakeholders, the agency seeks to foster a unified and agile response to emerging cyber threats and challenges.

Minister for the Public Service Andrew Little explained that acting upon the recommendation of the Cyber Security Advisory Committee, they are integrating New Zealand’s Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT NZ) into the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

“By consolidating these capabilities within a single agency, we aim to provide authoritative advice and a unified response to incidents across all threat levels, aligning with international best practices.”

Andrew Little emphasised the importance of this step in fortifying our nation’s cyber defences. He stressed that this strategic move favours New Zealand to capitalise on digital economy opportunities while ensuring secure government services for our citizens. This integration aims to streamline cybersecurity efforts and provide a more cohesive and efficient response to cyber incidents and potential threats.

Andrew Little, and Minister for the Digital Economy, Ginny Andersen jointly announced this crucial development. By bringing together the expertise and capabilities of both CERT NZ and NCSC under one umbrella agency within the GCSB, the government aims to optimise cyber defence measures and deliver more effective cybersecurity services to safeguard the digital interests of New Zealand and its citizens.

Ginny Andersen said, “Starting from 2018, the government has committed US$94 million to enhance its cyber security capabilities. We have introduced cutting-edge protection solutions like Malware Free Networks to safeguard internet service providers and private networks. Additionally, we have implemented baseline security templates, enabling organisations to adopt innovative cloud services while fortifying the security of their data.”

The agency endeavours to create a cyber-aware and cyber-resilient society through proactive engagement and collaboration with various stakeholders, including private sector entities, public organisations, and individual users.

This move signifies the government’s commitment to prioritising cybersecurity in the digital era and underscores the importance of a coordinated and unified approach in addressing cyber challenges. By establishing this lead operational cyber security agency, New Zealand aims to bolster its resilience against cyber threats and foster a safer and more secure digital environment for its citizens, businesses, and critical infrastructures.

Ginny Andersen expressed that establishing a specialised lead operational agency will enhance New Zealand’s ability to effectively counter cyber threats that inflict genuine harm on individuals and the economy.

“The establishment of a dedicated lead operational agency ensures New Zealand’s optimal preparedness to combat hackers who are known to inflict tangible harm on individuals and the economy,” he explained.

The integration of CERT NZ into NCSC will commence on 31st August. It will be carried out gradually over several years, ensuring the continuity of current services during the transition period.

PARTNER

Qlik’s vision is a data-literate world, where everyone can use data and analytics to improve decision-making and solve their most challenging problems. A private company, Qlik offers real-time data integration and analytics solutions, powered by Qlik Cloud, to close the gaps between data, insights and action. By transforming data into Active Intelligence, businesses can drive better decisions, improve revenue and profitability, and optimize customer relationships. Qlik serves more than 38,000 active customers in over 100 countries.

PARTNER

CTC Global Singapore, a premier end-to-end IT solutions provider, is a fully owned subsidiary of ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation (CTC) and ITOCHU Corporation.

Since 1972, CTC has established itself as one of the country’s top IT solutions providers. With 50 years of experience, headed by an experienced management team and staffed by over 200 qualified IT professionals, we support organizations with integrated IT solutions expertise in Autonomous IT, Cyber Security, Digital Transformation, Enterprise Cloud Infrastructure, Workplace Modernization and Professional Services.

Well-known for our strengths in system integration and consultation, CTC Global proves to be the preferred IT outsourcing destination for organizations all over Singapore today.

PARTNER

Planview has one mission: to build the future of connected work. Our solutions enable organizations to connect the business from ideas to impact, empowering companies to accelerate the achievement of what matters most. Planview’s full spectrum of Portfolio Management and Work Management solutions creates an organizational focus on the strategic outcomes that matter and empowers teams to deliver their best work, no matter how they work. The comprehensive Planview platform and enterprise success model enables customers to deliver innovative, competitive products, services, and customer experiences. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, with locations around the world, Planview has more than 1,300 employees supporting 4,500 customers and 2.6 million users worldwide. For more information, visit www.planview.com.

SUPPORTING ORGANISATION

SIRIM is a premier industrial research and technology organisation in Malaysia, wholly-owned by the Minister​ of Finance Incorporated. With over forty years of experience and expertise, SIRIM is mandated as the machinery for research and technology development, and the national champion of quality. SIRIM has always played a major role in the development of the country’s private sector. By tapping into our expertise and knowledge base, we focus on developing new technologies and improvements in the manufacturing, technology and services sectors. We nurture Small Medium Enterprises (SME) growth with solutions for technology penetration and upgrading, making it an ideal technology partner for SMEs.

PARTNER

HashiCorp provides infrastructure automation software for multi-cloud environments, enabling enterprises to unlock a common cloud operating model to provision, secure, connect, and run any application on any infrastructure. HashiCorp tools allow organizations to deliver applications faster by helping enterprises transition from manual processes and ITIL practices to self-service automation and DevOps practices. 

PARTNER

IBM is a leading global hybrid cloud and AI, and business services provider. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Nearly 3,000 government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and business services deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s legendary commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.