The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has launched a survey to assess the cyber resilience of Australia’s corporate and financial markets. 

ASIC says the cyber pulse survey will be one of the largest conducted and will measure publicly listed companies’ and other entities’ current security and controls, governance arrangements and incident preparedness. 

“Recent high-profile cyber attacks demonstrate the need for all businesses to have robust cyber capabilities,” ASIC Executive Director Markets Greg Yanco said. 

“The interconnectedness of our financial system can mean the impact of cyber attacks can spread well beyond a single entity. 

“This self-assessment will provide valuable insights to entities on their own cyber resilience measures compared to their industry peers.” 

ASIC says the Department of Home Affairs – which is supporting the Minister for Cyber Security and the government’s mission to make Australia the world’s most cyber secure nation by 2030 – is supportive of this survey and is looking forward to viewing the findings. 

Participation in the survey is voluntary, with all responses anonymised. 

The survey has been designed to help an entity assess its ability to govern and manage organisational-wide cyber risks; identify and protect information assets that support critical business services; and detect, respond to and recover from cyber security incidents. 

ASIC will publish a report with key findings from the survey later this year. 

The report will provide sectoral insights, areas for action and the better practices identified. Insights gained from the report will support the Department of Home Affairs to further target advice and assistance to the financial sector, support enhanced partnerships to continue the sector’s uplift in cyber security and resilience, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. 

The regulator says the survey is accessible to ASIC-regulated entities by logging into the ASIC Regulatory Portal, and following the link provided. 

Click here for the Regulatory Portal.