DHS recruits veterans for cyber unit

Dozens of former service men and women will be parachuted into the Department of Human Services over the next three years to help defend Australia’s welfare system from cyber-attack.

The new ‘Talent Unleashed’ program will enlist as many as 36 veterans to train and work within the department’s cyber security branch.

The program is being use to help former Navy, Army and Air Force personnel re-skill and transition into new careers.

The first four recruits – selected by key veterans’ training provider WithYouWithMe – will start work at the department today.

They will receive “extensive on the job training” to test for vulnerabilities in the department's IT environment and and work alongside senior staff members who also come from military backgrounds.

Minister for Human Services Michael Keenan said the program would help veterans' use skills developed during military service to keep the welfare system safe.

Their proven leadership and problem solving skills make them ideal candidates to work within our Cyber Security Branch where they will continue to help defend Australia, albeit against a different type of threat,” he said announcing the new program.

“That threat is ever-present and these men and women will gain invaluable experience in a vitally important and growing new industry which is expected to be hit by skill shortages in the not too distant future.”