Address to the Entrepreneur’s Organisation annual dinner

Sydney

11 June 2010

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First, may I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we meet on – and pay my respects to their elders, both past and present.

It is a pleasure to be here this evening.

Tonight I would like to speak about a couple of priority national security areas, highlight what the Government is doing in these areas and what role businesses such as your own do and can play. 

I have had the privilege of speaking at a couple of national security related events this week, and a common feature of all of my speeches has been the focus on the collective responsibility for aspects of Australia’s security – between governments, business and the broader community.  This focus seems fitting again tonight.

There are three key areas I would like to focus on:

1. All-Hazards - Building Resilience

As I am sure you are aware, the Rudd Government has set its national security focus on a much broader landscape than that which existed previously.  As the Prime Minister himself made clear in his National Security Statement at the end of 2008, ensuring Australia’s security is no longer just seen in terms of securing Australia from terrorism. 

That is and will remain a priority.  But we have broadened our focus to regard an effective national security strategy as protecting Australia from all range of threats – things such as cyber attack; serious and organised crime; and importantly, natural disaster and climate change.

This is part of out “all-hazards” approach to national security.  Protecting Australia and Australian interests from risks to their safety and interests whether man made or from natural events.

We are also focusing on resilience – the ability to bounce back.  Specifically, should Australia be attacked, we need to have systems in place to ensure that we can bounce back in the quickest time possible – that involves making sure we can get power to our hospitals, food to our people, find alternative water supplies – whatever we need to do to ensure the continuity of our economy and our society.

This is where you can play a key role.  While the Government can write policies and risk assessments to assist in achieving ‘resilience’, the Government doesn’t own the key infrastructure or run the businesses in our country.

Government-business partnerships are essential to ensuring the resilience and indeed the security of Australia. There are currently a number of forums for this partnership to solidify.

Some of you might be aware of the TISN – or the Trusted Information Sharing Network.  The TISN is a forum for industry and Government to share vital information on critical infrastructure protection and organisational resilience. 

There are nine TISNs:  Banking and Finance; Communications Sector; Emergency Services; Energy; Food Chain; Health; Mass Gatherings; Transport; and, finally, Water Services.

There are also expert advisory groups and ‘communities of interest’.  All of these groups are vital two-way exchanges between government and industry:  government can share information about the threat environment and owners or operators of our critical infrastructure can share issues that concern them, all in a trusted and collaborative environment. 

If you contribute to one of these groups, I thank you for your assistance.  And if you’re not, but you think you’re eligible, I encourage you to consider participating.

Another excellent example of the important government-industry partnership is the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation’s (ASIO) Business Liaison Unit (the BLU), which provides an interface between the private sector and the intelligence community. 

The principal objective of the BLU is to raise awareness about national security and inform companies’ risk-management planning through the provision of credible, intelligence-backed reporting. The BLU operates a website (www.blu.asio.gov.au) which is accessible by companies on a subscription basis and is free of charge. 

The BLU also maintains a Register of Australian interests overseas.  The Register helps protect Australian assets and personnel by keeping track of where public and private sector interests are located around the world.  In the event of a specific credible and imminent threat, affected companies will be directly contacted as part of an overall emergency response.  The Register currently has around 150 participating companies with over 1,000 facilities registered in 67 countries worldwide.

As we adapt our national security preparedness further to the ‘all-hazards’ and ‘resilient’ model, these forums will be integral to our success.

2. Organised Crime

The second area I would like to highlight tonight is organised crime.

Organised crime represents a significant threat to Australian society – it is estimated to cost the community more than $15 billion per year.

The Government is committed to tackling this serious issue through a comprehensive response; from working with our allies to tackle organised criminals from wherever they operate, to ensuring our law enforcement agencies have the necessary tools to work together to meet the challenge.

Organised crime groups engage in a wide range of illegal activities such as trafficking in banned substances, identity theft and money laundering.  They are profit motivated.  They often target businesses, as both a source of funds and legitimate facilitator of their criminal activities.

The impact of organised crime on business is significant.  It can massively distort markets to the prejudice of legitimate business.  It can also result in financial loss, loss of reputation and loss of integrity in internet technology (IT) systems.

Combating such a complex threat is challenging. Organised criminals have consistently demonstrated an ability to adapt to increasing pressure from law enforcement, particularly through the use of new technologies.

The Australian Government is nonetheless taking the lead in a coordinated national and international response to organised crime. Last November I launched, with my colleague the Minister for Home Affairs, the Commonwealth Organised Crime Strategic Framework.

The Framework is designed to enhance coordination across Australian Government agencies in relation to organised crime.  This includes the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) producing a biennial Organised Crime Threat Assessment which will inform the development of an Organised Crime Response Plan.

At the international level, I recently visited the United States for the second meeting of the international ‘Quintet’ of Attorneys-General from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia. Last year the Quintet agreed to progress strategies for working together to combat organised crime, in recognition of the increasingly borderless nature of organised crime. 

As part of this commitment, Australia led the development of a Declaration to cooperate in combating organised crime.  The Declaration was agreed in April and provides an important framework for our countries to work together to combat organised criminal activity.

The Declaration supports the sharing of criminal intelligence, assistance in investigations and prosecutions, cooperation in capacity building initiatives and the establishment of a forum to exchange information and explore further opportunities for working together to combat organised crime.

During my visit to Washington, I also took the opportunity to visit the US Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces Fusion Center which gathers organised crime information to support coordinated, multi-jurisdictional investigations focused primarily on drug trafficking and money laundering enterprises. This capability has proven invaluable to the US in combating organised crime through combining the resources of federal law enforcement agencies.

As a key pillar of our domestic Framework, I recently announced that the Government would invest $14.5 million to establish a Criminal Intelligence Fusion Centre in the Australian Crime Commission which will be a significant new tool to assist Australia’s law enforcement agencies to combat organised crime.

A broad range of criminal activities will be targeted, including illicit drugs, money laundering, identity crime and people smuggling.  The Australian Crime Commission is also exploring opportunities to expand the Fusion Centre to involve representatives from the banking, finance, telecommunications and insurance sectors.

On top of this, you might recall that earlier this year, Parliament passed significant legislative reforms which are central to the Government’s response to organised crime.

New unexplained wealth provisions were added to the Commonwealth criminal asset confiscation regime to target those who profit from crime and whose wealth exceeds the value of their lawful earnings.  These provisions are designed to capture those who sit at the top of organised crime food chains, profiting from crimes committed by people working for them.

The reforms also included new criminal organisation offences that target people who associate with organised criminals, as well as those who support or direct the activities of a criminal organisation.

The legislation also implemented national model laws for undercover operations, the use of assumed identities by law enforcement and the protection of operative’s identities in court proceedings.

The enhancements made to Australia’s anti-organised crime regime should result in positive outcomes – greater detection, strengthened investigation and ultimately, prosecutions.  But again, there is a role here for you – business – to play.

Let me draw to your attention to a practical example.  In April this year, the Australian Crime Commission issued a warning that a large and sophisticated international organised crime network was carrying out card skimming at Australian retail outlets.

The Australian Crime Commission is working with a number of banking and retail associations to help protect consumers and encourage merchants to take extra precautions with their EFTPOS terminals.

You too can take these steps to protect customers’ information by:

Combating organised crime in Australia will be greatly aided by information and assistance provided to our law enforcement bodies by Australian business and community.  If you see something suspicious report it.  And if you can take measures to prevent crime, such as those I just mentioned with the EFTPOS machine, I encourage you to do so.

This is a good lead-in to the final area I would like to discuss this evening – cyber security.

3.  Cyber Security

I would not be telling you anything new by stating that Australia is very much an ‘online’ nation.  Much of our business and general communication is conducted over the Internet.

Indeed, now, more than ever, Australian prosperity and security is heavily reliant on a secure and resilient online environment. However, just as the internet provides new opportunities for businesses to operate and expand, it also presents opportunities for those with criminal intentions.

This week is actually National Cyber Security Awareness Week – a week devoted to raising public awareness to the various threats online, and what to do to protect yourself, or your business, from those threats.

The online environment can be misused in a variety of ways:  espionage, unauthorised modification of data, distribution of malicious software such as viruses, or to commit fraud or steal identities. 

Australia has a strong framework in place to counter these threats.  Cybercrime laws criminalise a range of conduct such as unauthorised access and the modification or impairment of computer systems.  These offences carry penalties of two to ten years imprisonment.

In November 2009, I announced Australia’s first Cyber Security Strategy, aimed at maintaining a secure, resilient and trusted electronic environment that supports Australia’s national security and maximises the benefits of the digital economy.  The Strategy is supported by two key capabilities:  the Cyber Security Operations Centre (CSOC) within the Department of Defence and CERT Australia, a computer emergency response team within the Attorney-General’s Department.   

CERT Australia works closely with the owners and operators of critical infrastructure including the infrastructure and financial sectors to provide assistance to help protect against cyber threats.

The Australian Federal Police has also been forming partnerships with the banking and finance sectors through their Joint Banking and Financial Sector Investigation Teams.  These teams have police and banking staff working side-by-side to identify and remove fraudulent finance-related internet content. Work is also being undertaken to combat internet crimes against business such as on-line fraud, scams and hoax emails.

The Government has also been coordinating its response to cybercrime internationally by taking steps to accede to the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime. The Convention is the only binding international treaty on cyber crime and aims to establish a fast and effective regime for international cooperation to respond to cyber threats.

But as I have made clear at speeches delivered this week as part of National Cyber Security Awareness Week, ensuring Australia’s cyber security is very much the collective responsibility of all Australians. 

The Government does not own the internet.  We can write policies and strategies to encourage individuals to take steps to protect themselves online, and businesses to do what they can to protect their customers when engaged in transactions online, but unless these measures are taken up, their effect will be minimal.

For businesses operating in the online environment, I cannot stress the importance of you taking reasonable steps to protect our own information and systems, and the information entrusted to you by those who use your service or buy your product.

There are a range of simple actions and behaviours that all internet users – businesses and individuals - can adopt to minimise their exposure to cyber security risks.  And in so protecting their own systems they prevent their own computers or networks from detrimentally affecting or infecting others.

Many of these are detailed in a new publication that I launched earlier this week entitled, ‘Protecting Yourself Online – What Everyone Needs To Know’.  It may seem like a simplistic booklet, but the measures detailed in it are worthwhile and I encourage you to pick up a copy, and to make use of the links to other information available online that it contains.

The Government remains committed to protecting the safety and security of Australia and Australians in the evolving security environment we find ourselves in.

But as I hope I have demonstrated this evening, our ability to do this becomes much stronger when we work in partnership with industry and business on practical measures and solutions.

I am confident that our continued work together on these important issues will yield many successes.

Thank you.