Policies need constant review in maintaining cyber-security: IIA

The Internet Industry Association (IIA) and its partners are striving to make the Internet safer, more so when the national organisation rolled out its iCode best practice standards. The iCode is a voluntary code of practice that aims to improve cyber-security in Australia and encourage an enhanced cyber-security culture within ISPs.

Government and telco representatives recently met at a forum in Sydney to review the IIA icode, in association with the cyber-security awareness week.

It plans to make changes to the code by September this year.

There are currently two parallel reviews being undertaken, one by the IIA and the other by the Government.

DBCDE Asia-Pacific section digital economy strategy division assistant secretary of cyber-security policy, Sabeena Oberoi, said that the organisation conducted a survey which found that 10 per cent of respondents with an Internet connection have been contacted by their ISPs in educating them about cyber-security.

Outcomes of the survey are expected to be available from August, which will result in inputs for the iCode review.

“Nothing in our industry ever remains static, so we need to look at the way in which we should be evolving,” Sophos Asia-Pacific director and former IIA director, Rob Forsyth, said.

He claimed that there were three important discussions that need to be addressed in the contest for cyber security – the roll-out of IPV6, increasing usage of mobile devices and the ‘Internet of things’ in appliances such as TVs.

Oberoi said that the iCode highlighted the need for education awareness.

“It is a very important component as more people take up technology, especially with the growth of mobile devices and they start relying on IP based technologies. Its importance will be amplified with the National Broadband Network (NBN) Co. rollout,” she said.

According to Optus corporate and regulatory affairs senior regulatory analyst and IIA iCode review taskforce member, Ana Tabacman, customer education is one of the biggest difficulties it faces.

Internet Society of Australia policy committee member and IIA iCode review taskforce member, Holly Raiche, said customers need to be educated on the need of a password, changing their password regularly and conducting security updates.

However, there needs to be a consistency in messaging, Tabacman mentioned.

“We’ve got messaging from Government, ISPs and consumer groups to customers but there is no overall coordinated approach. In some instances, there has been conflicting messages to customers,” she said.

Forsyth said such issues should be thought of when designing the reviewed codes of the icode.

Register now for the ARN Security Forum 2013 on June 4 at the Sydney Mint

• Bookmark this page
• Share this article
  •  
  • facebook
  • slashdot
  • digg
  • Reddit
  • stumbleupon
  • linkedin
  • twitter
• Got more on this story? Email ARN
• Follow ARN on twitter

• Share
  Share this article1

  •  google+
  • facebookfacebook
  • slashdotslashdot
  • diggdigg
  • RedditReddit
  • stumbleuponstumbleupon
  • linkedinlinkedin
  • twittertwitter
• print
• email
• Bookmark