On 13 July 2021, the Australian Government opened consultation on options for regulatory reforms and voluntary incentives to strengthen the cyber security of Australia’s digital economy. Submissions to the discussion paper,
Strengthening Australia’s cyber security regulations and incentives, closed on 27 August 2021.
Submissions to the discussion paper can be viewed below.
Why Government considered cyber security reforms
The Government considered stronger cyber security regulations and incentives to support a growing digital economy and respond to a growing threat environment, particularly ransomware.
This work formed part of Australia’s Cyber Security Strategy 2020 and also responded to recommendations of the 2020 Cyber Security Strategy Industry Advisory Panel.
It complemented the Government's critical infrastructure reforms and the Review of the Privacy Act 1988.
Issues for consultation
The Government sought feedback on possible voluntary and regulatory measures in three areas:
-
Setting clear cyber security expectations through cyber security standards for:
- corporate governance
- personal information and
- smart (internet of things) devices.
-
Increasing transparency through:
- cyber security labelling for smart devices
- software vulnerability disclosure policies and
- health checks for small businesses.
-
Protecting consumer rights through appropriate legal remedies for victims.
Submissions to the discussion paper
During the consultation period 13 July to 27 August 2021, we hosted 32 consultation events, including open forums, industry roundtables and bilateral discussions, and spoke to over 770 businesses, community groups and individuals on how to best strengthen the cyber security of Australia’s digital economy.
In addition to these events, we invited interested stakeholders to provide a written submission to the discussion paper. As of 20 October 2021, the Department had received 143 submissions in response to the discussion paper. 121 are public and have been published below.
Further Information
For further information follow us on Twitter @AUCyberStrategy or email us at
techpolicy@homeaffairs.gov.au
