Australian small and medium businesses (SMBs) are widely seen as more vulnerable to cyber security incidents and crime. To better understand the issue and find directions for new solutions, the Australian House of Representatives voted to create a Select Committee on Cyber Security for Small to Medium Sized Businesses and Organisations.
The Chair of this committee, Sally Sitou MP, described it as the first federal inquiry to specifically examine this issue for small businesses, noting that “small businesses are on the frontline of cyber risk but too often they’re expected to defend themselves without the time, tools or resources they need.”
This committee received bipartisan support, with the Shadow Minister for the Digital Economy, Aaron Violi MP, calling it an “important committee” and putting forward a supportive proposal for a member of the Opposition to be deputy Chair, which was accepted by the Government.
We provided a submission to the Committee to share what we’ve learnt about this problem in our work at Lumenas, and put forward a range of proposed actions for government, the business community and industry associations to address this issue systematically. Lumenas provides one part of broader solution through our tools for accidental IT leaders, but we think there’s more work to be done across the economy so small businesses are better supported.
To read our full submission click here.