The Government has pledged NZ$8 million to implement its revised cybersecurity strategy, alongside an extra NZ$9.3 million allocation to support the country's national cybersecurity response centre, CERT NZ.

“Our cyber security system is maturing. New institutions like CERT NZ have been established and all our government agencies with cyber security responsibilities are building significant connections across the system, both domestically and internationally,” the report said.

The project, known as Advanced Connected Vehicles Victoria (ACV²), will leverage artificial intelligence to monitor VicRoad’s traffic camera system and identify potential hazards, transmitting real-time notifications to a vehicle’s dashboard over Telstra’s 4G mobile network.

As machine learning (ML) technologies increasingly pervade Australia's public agencies and private enterprises, the CSIRO has acknowledged the potential vulnerability of ML algorithms to adversarial attack – with malicious agents triggering small, carefully designed changes to trick its algorithm into reaching fake conclusions or incorrect predictions.

With a “significant growth in patronage” expected over the next decade, placing “new and unique demands on workforce planning, coverage and capabilities” of the NSW train network, Group Rail has sought a new digital platform to help improve its planning and operational capabilities, including capacity planning, supply management, scheduling, rostering, day of operations management and performance analytics, which was revealed in a notice of tender released last Friday.  

Divvied out over two years, the “seed fund” will go towards facilitating the adoption of common platforms across government, as well as removing duplication and increasing efficiency, Budget papers revealed.

The Fund is part of a broader push by Berejiklian Government to consolidate agencies, ensuring public administration “is streamlined, effective and citizen focused,” it said.

Noble, a long-standing and decorated public servant, takes the reins from former ACSC chief Alastair MacGibbon, who announced his resignation in early May to coincide with the federal election that month. MacGibbon had led the cybersecurity agency since January 2018, overseeing the merger of several government agencies– including the ACSC – into the newly-independent ASD.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), which conducts the quinquennial national census, has confirmed PwC Australia will be enlisted to build and operate the online survey. This includes an online form and website to be hosted on AWS servers, as well as added online assistance feature to help individuals complete the survey.

Bunbury, a port city more than 170kms south of Perth, has been selected to pilot the ServiceWA initiative, which includes both face-to-face transaction points as well as a dedicated online service portal.

The Bunbury pilot will offer a single point of contact for 85 government services spanning five agencies, including the departments of Transport, Justice, Communities, Primary Industries and Regional Development; and the Western Australia Police Force.

The Digital Health Strategy maps out “a ten-year vision” and investment focus for ACT's health service, including a range of new technologies for doctors, nurses, and patients.

Meegan Fitzharris, the Territory’s Minister for Health and Wellbeing, said the rollout of the Digital Health Strategy “will ensure the ACT public health system is able to adapt as new digital technologies are made available to improve health services and clinical care.”

Minister for Government Digital Services Dr Megan Woods spoke of the Blueprint as a manifesto for inclusivity, outlining the Ardern Government’s aim to ensure all Kiwis can reap the fruits of the digital world, whilst also identifying groups lacking adequate access to online services.

“That’s what we mean we talk about digital inclusion. As more vital services move online, those who don’t have the skills or access will find it more difficult to go about their daily lives… We want to ensure no one is left out or left behind as more and more of our lives move online,” Woods said.

In a concerted effort to reduce this grim toll and prevent the growing misuse and abuse of prescription medications, the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has announced it will pioneer the deployment of the nation's first real-time, cloud-based, prescription monitoring system. 

Developed by Fred IT Group, a Victoria-based specialist pharma-tech developer, the $30 million program will allow doctors and pharmacists to track the dispensing of high-risk medications in real-time. 

Though an exact location is yet to be decided, the state government said its funding boost would help to identify and establish a Melbourne base for the new National Centre for Artificial Intelligence, which it said would “[bring] together a mix of world-leading businesses, start-ups and tertiary institutions.”

However, the Centre’s establishment – and the Vic Government's promise for it to be housed in Melbourne – will be contingent on a formal agreement with the next Federal Government, with Labor affirming its commitment to the project if elected. 

The mobile devices will offer a range of practical services for frontline cops, allowing them to complete administrative tasks – such as identity checks and the recording of statements – on site without needing to return to the office.

The handheld computer devices will come equipped with a “suite of applications that will ensure access to crucial policing functions in the field”, the Government said in a statement.

The global index, compiled by the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government, assessed 38 countries – mostly from within the OECD – based on a range of public service performance metrics, including digital services delivery, regulation, tax administration, and policymaking.

New Zealand’s public agencies were praised for their advanced e-procurement functions as well as their progressive and inclusive policies “that enable small and medium-sized enterprises to take part in central government procurement”.

FST Gov: As Master Planner for the Smart City of Busan, you’ve been instrumental in developing this traditional port metropolis into an interconnected, IoT-enabled ‘smart’ hub. What will be your focus over the next six to 12 months as the Smart Cities project rolls out?

Jong-Sung: Busan National Pilot Smart City is scheduled to open – or will begin to move in – in the latter half of 2021. We have finalised the master plan, which, at the end of last year, defined goals and tasks with priority.