A new initiative coordinated by Monash University academics in partnership with the Oceania Cyber Security Centre (OCSC) intends to build and educate organisations in 11 Indo-Pacific countries to combat rising cybersecurity threats.
The Post-Quantum Cryptography in the Indo-Pacific Program (PQCIP) seeks to work collaboratively with organisations and governmental agencies in Malaysia, Indonesia, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Kiribati, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Tuvalu, the Cook Islands, and Nauru over the course of the following three years.
The researchers are searching for participants from 11 countries in the Indo-Pacific who are interested in cybersecurity and information technology (IT) and who would want to get free training in sophisticated cryptography that can better protect against threats from quantum computers.
“Most currently deployed cryptography is not strong enough against attacks from large scale quantum computers, which can rapidly decrypt most of today’s encrypted data, and we expect such computers to become a reality over the coming years,”
— Project Director, Associate Professor Ron Steinfeld from Monash University’s Faculty of Information Technology
“Recently, we have seen a huge increase in cyberattacks and data leaks. It is critically important now to help neighbouring countries strengthen their capabilities to withstand existing cyber threats while also preparing for the next generation of attacks,” he added.
Through the PQCIP, cybersecurity professionals from Monash and OCSC will guide participating companies and government agencies through a cycle of comprehensive post-quantum cybersecurity capability assessments, specialised education, planning, and cyber threat evaluation.
The programme aims to equip participants with a sophisticated understanding of post-quantum cryptography, thorough knowledge of related tools, and the ability to create their own transition plan to protect their organisation from quantum computing threats, according to OCSC Head of Research and Capacity Building Dr. James Boorman.
“The training will be adapted to fit the local needs, be available online for reference after the course and free for anyone managing or working in IT or cybersecurity within most government entities (excluding military, intelligence, or law-enforcement) or organisations in any of the 11 countries. We are keen to hear from anyone interested in building these capabilities. Collaboratively standardising and enhancing cybersecurity within these countries will result in stronger relationships and data protection across the entire region,” said Dr Boorman.
The PQCIP is funded by the United States Department of State and all components of the program will be available to identified participants free of charge. Please visit the program’s website for more information or contact pqcip@monash.edu.