Why Your Organisation Needs a CISO in Australia
Australian regulators hold boards accountable for cyber risk. The Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 (SOCI) requires a risk management programme and mandatory incident reporting, APRA CPS 234 sets information security requirements for regulated entities, and the Cyber Security Act 2024 introduced ransomware payment reporting. Customers and government buyers often expect alignment with the ASD's Essential Eight. Many organisations need a CISO to lead this, without a full-time executive role.
With our outsourced CISO (virtual CISO, vCISO) service, an experienced information security leader takes on the CISO role for your organisation as a managed service — a few days per month, at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire, and without recruitment or turnover risk.
What Your vCISO Takes Care Of
- Security strategy and roadmap — A clear information security strategy aligned with your business objectives, risk appetite and regulatory obligations
- Governance and policies — Security organisation, roles and responsibilities, and a complete set of information security policies
- Risk management — Identification, assessment and treatment of information security risks, including third-party and supply chain risks
- Regulatory compliance — Mapping the cybersecurity requirements that apply to you and keeping evidence ready for regulators, auditors and customers
- ISO 27001 certification — Leading the implementation of your Information Security Management System (ISMS) up to the certification audit
- Incident readiness — Incident response plan, reporting procedures within the legal deadlines and regular exercises
- Management reporting — Security metrics and risks translated into business language for management and the board
- Awareness — Security awareness training so that your employees recognise and report threats
Cybersecurity Requirements in Australia
Your vCISO keeps your security programme aligned with the frameworks that apply to your organisation:
- Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 (SOCI) — Critical infrastructure risk management programme and mandatory cyber incident reporting
- APRA CPS 234 Information Security — Information security capability, controls, testing and notification for APRA-regulated entities, together with CPS 230 Operational Risk Management
- Cyber Security Act 2024 — Mandatory reporting of ransomware payments
- ASD Essential Eight — The Australian Signals Directorate’s baseline mitigation strategies and maturity model
- Privacy Act 1988 — Security of personal information under APP 11 and the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme
- ISO/IEC 27001 — The international standard for information security management systems
How Does It Work?
Assessment & Strategy
We assess your security posture against the applicable requirements and agree a prioritised security roadmap with you.
Implementation
Your vCISO leads the security programme: governance, policies, risk treatment and technical controls with your IT team and providers.
Ongoing Leadership
Regular risk reviews, incident handling, audit preparation and management reporting keep your programme up to date.
Why ResGuard?
- Experienced security leaders who have built and run ISMS programmes in regulated industries
- The ResGuard Compliance Manager platform for your ISMS, risks, policies, tasks and audit evidence
- Flexible scope — the number of days per month adapts to the phase of your programme
- Need a fast route to certification? Combine your vCISO with our ISMS workshop for ISO 27001