Budget 2023: $23.4 million for small business cyber wardens program, delivered by COSBOA

After waves of cyberhacks on Optus, Medibank and Telstra exposed millions of Australians’ sensitive data last year, the government will invest $23.4 million over the next three years to help small businesses build their resilience to cyber threats by training in-house cyber experts.

The small business Cyber Wardens program will be delivered by the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA), a big federal budget win for the organisation, which has been piloting the program and lobbying the government for funding to expand it.

In recent years small businesses have rapidly digitised, making them increasingly vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated cybercrime attacks. The government’s Digital Economy strategy aims for all businesses to be digital businesses by 2030. 

A cybercrime attack on a small business can cause significant financial and reputational damage, putting at risk the viability of the business and the jobs it provides in the community. 

COSBOA’s pilot Cyber Wardens program will now become Australia’s first cyber safety workplace certification or micro-credential for the small business sector. Up to 50,000 cyber wardens will be trained over the next three years. 

The program is designed by small business experts for the vital small business sector and will upskill Australia’s small business workforce to give owners and employees the knowledge and tools they need to safely engage in the digital economy. 

With more than 7.4 million employees, small business is the largest employer in the country and accounts for more than 99% of Australian enterprises.

Earlier this year, Cyber Wardens revealed 80% of small business owners are not confident in their ability to defend themselves or rebuild after a cyber security threat.

The government hopes this measure will help mitigate and reduce the harms associated with cyber attacks on small businesses. 

The funding is part of $101.6 million over five years from 2022–23 to support and uplift cyber security in Australia, including $19.5 million over the next 12 months to help improve the security of critical infrastructure assets and help businesses respond to significant cyber attacks.

Funding also includes $46.5 million to establish the Coordinator for Cyber Security to ensure that the Commonwealth’s cyber security efforts are strategic, coordinated, timely and effective. 

The Coordinator will be supported by the National Office of Cyber Security and dedicated resources from within the Department of Home Affairs and other Commonwealth entities, with capacity to surge further in the event of a cyber incident.

To see SmartCompany‘s full budget coverage, click here.