From Australia: The latest in tech and innovation
In recent news, the banking industry adapts its tech, businesses struggle to maximise value from cloud, and the Government doubles-down on cybersecurity.
APRA chief’s cyber warning
The pandemic has fundamentally changed the meaning of business-as-usual for Australia’s Big Four Banks. Australian Prudential Regulation Authority chairman, Wayne Byres, says the banks have been operating beyond their risk tolerance, with the current climate producing hurdles for their ability to enact disaster-recovery plans.
Business sees public cloud as a great enabler but struggles to extract maximum value
A new study has revealed businesses tremendously see value in public cloud. Few, however, have grown cloud initiatives across the business due to fear of security, compliance and “vendor lock-in”. With the shift to remote working, organisations see public cloud as a significant technical and business benefit over on-premise infrastructure.
Australian government doubles down on cybersecurity in new digital-forward budget
The 2020-2021 Federal Budget placed strong emphasis on the need to bolster cybersecurity efforts as businesses and their employees operate remotely due to the pandemic. While the shift to remote working pushed businesses to expand digital strategies and capabilities, security experts caution that increased digitalisation makes organisations even bigger targets for cyber-attacks.
Nielsen – Australians spent 38% more time with online news in September 2020
Australians are spending 38% more time reading news online than they were 12 months ago according to Nielsen. The global data measurement and analytics firm’s latest Digital Content Ratings also reveals Australians spent 9% more time reading news content online than they did for the entire year of 2019, despite three months of the 2020 year remaining. Being seen in the media as a thought leader and expert has never been more important as readership numbers continue to climb.
Westpac signs Afterpay as first digital bank-as-a-service customer
Big Four bank Westpac has signed Afterpay as the first user of its new cloud-based bank-as-a-service platform, which Afterpay will leverage to offer savings accounts and cash flow tools to Australian consumers.
AU$7.4 billion tied up in active Australian government IT projects
As of January 2020, active government IT projects totaled $7.4 billion with $1.5 billion listed as the value for new proposals. 36 agencies were engaged for 50 digital and IT-enabled initiatives, with 26 agencies engaged for 48 in-flight projects. The Digital Transformation Agency says that it has sustained its work with agencies and provided independent assurance for key digital investments as part of the $500 million Australian Public Service (APS) Modernisation Fund.