Premier concedes not enough cash to plug holes in government cyber security
Premier Chris Minns wants all government agencies to “immediately” improve their cyber security but concedes it is “not possible” because there is not enough money.
NSW
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Premier Chris Minns wants all government agencies to “immediately” improve their cyber security but concedes it is “not possible” because there is not enough money.
His comments come after a scathing report from the Auditor General found more than two thirds of NSW Government agencies do not have even the basic mandatory cyber security protections in place.
“It is a concern,” Mr Minns conceded.
“I would like to see us meet all the criteria immediately that the Auditor General identified. That’s not possible, though (because) most of the funding for cyber security in NSW had been cut or put on a funding cliff by the previous government.”
The Minns government has committed almost $90 million in the budget over four years to improve agencies’ cyber security measures.
“I think over time, you’ll see the perennial or yearly investment in cybersecurity pay off,” he said.
The Premier also revealed that he has been briefed by the country’s domestic spy agency ASIO on cyber security risks in government agencies.
“We do get a lot of briefings, particularly from national agencies with responsibility of protecting privacy and individual data,” he said.
He would not reveal whether ASIO has warned the NSW Government of specific weak points in its cyber security measures.
“I’m not going to provide a blueprint for where there could be a potential loophole,” he said.
However the Cyber Security Insights 2025 Audit report pointed out a string of blind spots including systems run by third party agencies where incidents nearly tripled last year.
It also said agencies were pooling reports of incidents. This saw reports almost halve last year, cutting transparency on the number and extent of cyber breaches.
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Originally published as Premier concedes not enough cash to plug holes in government cyber security
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