First Aussie cyber threat sharing centre opens in Brisbane

The federal government today officially opened Australia's first cyber threat intelligence sharing centre, promised last year as part of its national cyber security strategy, in Brisbane.

The Queensland capital won the right to host the first centre last October despite Sydney and Melbourne being widely expected to house the inaugural joint private-public sector facility.

The Brisbane operation will be led by CERT Australia, and its foundation partners include the Commonwealth Bank, Telstra, and Rio Tinto. The AFP and Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission will be permanent participants in the Brisbane facility.

Cyber minister Dan Tehan today said further centres would come online in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth, but did not provide a timeframe.

The centres co-locate government, business, and academic cyber security experts to produce data and advice on threats to IT security.

The facilities will be complemented by an information-sharing portal currently being built.

"This centre in Brisbane is the first stage of a $47 million program piloting collaborative work spaces where industry, government and law enforcement work together and share relevant threat information," Tehan said in a statement.

"Securing Australia’s cyberspace is not something the Commonwealth can do alone. This collaborative approach will provide up-to-date information about the nature of cyber threats, help partners better understand cyber risks, and allow them to collaborate on shared challenges."

The private-public threat information sharing centres are one of the five pillars forming the $230 million strategy released mid-last year.

They are modelled on the UK's cybersecurity information sharing partnership (CiSP), which launched in 2013 and now covers 200 organisations and 5300 individuals.

The CiSP facilitates the real-time exchange of threat information between the public and private sectors via co-located industry and government analysts.