Telstra launches new government cybersecurity offerings

Telstra has extended its range of cybersecurity solutions to include government customers with the launch of two new tailored offerings.

The new solutions are Sovereign SecureEdge and government-specific cyber detection and response capabilities, managed by a specialist team.

Telstra Enterprise group owner for government Nicole McMahon said Telstra had “a long and productive history” of partnering with government and protecting Australians and their interests.

“COVID-19 has rapidly accelerated digital adoption, including more digital Government services,” she said.

“This creates huge opportunities for communities – particularly those in rural or remote locations – but can also present significant security challenges given the sophistication and rising number of cyber-attacks on Australian organisations, which now cost the economy more than $3 billion each year.”

Sovereign SecureEdge aims to help customers implement more stringent compliance measures with reduced complexity and without having to build a solution from scratch. The offering is built on cloud architecture and helps reduce latency and limitations that come with more complex perimeter-based solutions.

The cyber detection and response offering is built on existing security operations centres that integrate with Government systems, endpoints and cloud services to monitor threats using big data analytics from Telstra’s managed security service platform.

Both solutions are designed and built to Federal, State and Local Government requirements, including iRAP assessment measures. They are also built on some existing Telstra offerings for Government clients, like private networks, flexible cloud management platforms, unified communications, mobility solutions and IoT offerings.

McMahon added that the new capabilities would help secure the digitisation of Australia’s economy and meet the Federal Government’s commitment to providing access to all government services digitally by 2025.

“As we recover from the pandemic, reliance on digital services will remain critical, so it’s important that we secure and protect our digital environment, as disruptions due to cyber attacks could significantly impact the economy and its recovery,” she said.

“Telstra’s capability to protect, detect and respond to cyber threats, coupled with the unparalleled visibility of threats we have from operating the largest and most complex network in Australia, uniquely positions us to be able to act on cyber issues in real time.

“Our team of technology and cyber experts can provide Federal, State and Local Government with the secure, sovereign and intelligent networks and technology solutions to keep Australia safe.”

McMahon added Telstra will also continue to boost security at the network level to protect consumers and organisations from increasing cyber security threats.

“As part of our Cleaner Pipes initiatives we’re now blocking 13 million scam voice calls on average per month, and more than 100 million scam calls have been blocked since we started this work,” she said.

“We’re also ramping up efforts to filter and block scam SMS messages with new technology following a successful trial with Services Australia and are using Domain Name System (DNS) and other filtering techniques to reduce harm caused by scam websites.”

Sovereign SecureEdge and Cyber Detection and Response capabilities will be available for Government customers “in the coming months”.