Technology Units in the Australian Security Intelligence Organization - Capstone Project Example

Research Policy Report Name: Course: Tutor: Institution: Date: Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.0 Part A: Organization 3 1.1 Organization 3 1.2 Crimes Countered 3 1.3 Applied Technology and Framework 5 2.0 Part B: Technology Analysis 6 2.1 Technology Use Justification 6 2.1.1 Proactive Approach 6 2.1.2 Increase Coordination 6 2.1.3 Increase Network safety 7 2.2 Technology Use Success 8 2.2.1 Real-time Inter-agencies Data Transfers 8 2.2.2 Cyber Bullying Reduction 8 2.3 Unintended Technology Effects 9 2.3.1 Individual Privacy Invasion 9 2.3.2 Fairness and Freedom of Expression Denial 9 2.4 Recommendations 10 References 11 1.0 Part A: Organization 1.1 Organization The Australian Federal government is alive to the rising challenge on the use and growth of technology application both internally and across the globe. As such, such technology application as Edwards (2010, p.31) noted, has increased security and safety threats in the market. Consequently, in the late November 2014, the government launched the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC). In this regard, the security unit was not a new creation, but a strategic move to assemble and establish a unitary coordination of previously existing units focusing on technology security issues across the States. Therefore, the ACSC led to the merging of the respective technology units in the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, the Australian Federal Police, and the Australian crime commission. As such, each of the participating security portfolios’ serving as the key funding partners for the agency operations based on their respective budget allocations. Moreover, the ACSC is placed as a direct responsibility of the Attorney General and the Minister of Defence, due to its legal and security operational mandates. 1.2 Crimes Countered The development of the agency was based on the need to establish a coordinated operational point through which online data and information on security could be seamlessly evaluated, analyzed and shared across Australian security agencies. As already noted, the organization is especially focused in combating cyber crimes in the Australian society. In this regard, as Tofan, Andrei and Dinca (2012, p.107) stated, technology changes and the increased rise of the application and use of the internet has led to the rise of cyber crimes such as terrorism planning, and cyber bullying, among others. Therefore, the organization seeks to develop a relevant and appropriate framework through which to counter the challenges. On one hand, the agency is mandated with the mandate of creating and raising awareness on the cyber security needs including sensitizing the public and the private entities on the challenge and risks associated with cyber security and as such promote the development of relevant proactive infrastructure to insulate such a segment against the potential cyber security threats. In this regard, the agency promotes and encourages the reporting of cyber security incidents proving such a reporting framework, despite their minimal magnitude across the Australian States. In addition, the agency is mandated with the role of investigating and analyzing any detected cyber security crimes. As such the Australian Government (2015) stated that that the venture analyses the magnitude, risk and threat level of such crimes and consequently reports to the authority and responsible law enforcement agencies for the execution of the relevant legal course of action. Further, the agency upon its full operational status by the end of the year intends to curb the cyber crimes through supporting and guiding the government cyber security regulations and policies through the provision of annual and regular cyber security reports, evaluating threats and risk areas, as well as the relevant recommended courses of actions. Therefore, based on the above analysis it is apparent that upon its full operational status acquisition, the ACSC seeks to regulate the cyber security market through the development of relevant infrastructure as well as legal and administrative policies to govern and safeguard the Australian market into the future. 1.3 Applied Technology and Framework The ACSC agency relies on the application of information communication technology (ICT) skill an expertise as well as technology data analysis. In this regard, through the drawing together of the existing agencies resources, the venture has acquired a highly qualified staff, intended to rise to above 1300 staff members by the end of 2015 enhances the data analytical capabilities. Moreover, the agency has invested and intends to increase its investment in the anti hacking software detection (Rafiqi, 2006, p.108). As such, the developed system seeks to establish any unauthorized access to Australian websites and ICT systems secured with relevant firewalls, with such unauthorized access flagged as potential security threat risks for further reviews. Moreover, the agency seeks to develop a system through which to detect keywords for all data transferred across the Australian network system, with such keywords linked to terrorism and global and national security concerns, to serve as a counter terrorism measure (“ACSC”, 2015). Finally, the agency intends to apply the electronic financial transfer tracking and detection systems. As such, this will serve as an additional tool through which to counter electronic based security concerns through which key criminal activities are funded and financed through. As such, the technology systems development will serve as an ideal tool through which criminal funding and activities would be proactively detected and subsequently eliminated and avoided through the application and the use of the relevant and appropriate law enforcement agencies, through the coordinated agency data and information haring system, which serves as the fundamental operational objective for the ACSC establishment. 2.0 Part B: Technology Analysis 2.1 Technology Use Justification A critical evaluation of the ACSC operations, establishes that technology application and adoption, as well as its development and improvement on a continuous basis is a compulsory application. This report section evaluates the justification and reasons for technology application in the execution of the ACSC mandate. 2.1.1 Proactive Approach One of the reasons for applying technology is to support the agency safety need for evaluating potential cyber security threats. As such, the use of the unauthorized access technology on the Australian network enables the agency to detect potential cyber security crimes. Consequently, as Radu (2013, p.35) noted, such an early detection technology allows the respective security and law enforcement organs as well as affected organizations such as the private organisations facing data security exposure risk develop proactive measures. Thus, the development and application of such high level technology, will serve as a crucial tool for reducing the overall cyber related crimes in the Australian market. This is especially, in the case that the agency uses superior and increasingly modern technology analysis tools, improved on a regular basis, thus overriding those applied and used by hackers and cyber criminals. 2.1.2 Increase Coordination An additional reason for the agency development and the development of the current and intended technology by the end of the 2015 will increase coordination across the security and law enforcement agencies across the Australian State. In this regard, the developed technology allows for the seamless and secure transfer of information and data across the departments on a real time bases. Consequently, while as safeguarding the security and privacy of the transferred information, the intended technology will allow for seamless transfer of data across agencies, for appropriate and timely actions execution. Therefore, this analysis argues that the application of a coordinated and centralized data processing technology under the ACSC and the subsequent sharing of such data across the Australian law and security agencies is an ideal approach and practice that will guarantee and facilitate increased online security and confidence across the market. 2.1.3 Increase Network safety Moreover, the developed technology aims at increasing the overall security across the Australian internet network. Industrial reviews indicate that the Australian industry is among the leading global markets in the application and adoption of technology. As such, a majority of the business operations, transactions and records are conducted and stored online respectively. Consequently, this exposes the market stakeholders to the rising global risk of confidential data theft. Therefore, the proposed technology application is a strategic approach through which the government will develop an additional national firewall to the existing individual, organizational firewalls (Pawlak and Wendling, 2013, p. 538). As such, this will protect and safeguard the information transferred and stored on the Australian network against external unauthorized access, thus protecting the corporate and business interests in the region. In addition, the government developed technology will monitor data transfers to reduce the risk of cyber bullying, which has emerged as a social vice, through keywords technology sieving platform, a move that will enhance, the creation of an ethical, moral, safe and equal Australian society in the digital age. 2.2 Technology Use Success A basic evaluation on the current situation in the Australian market and the proposed technology development needs and objectives establishes that the proposed technology will most likely be successful. 2.2.1 Real-time Inter-agencies Data Transfers On one hand, the technology application will enhance increased coordination and real time data transfer. Traditionally, as Mani, Kim-Kwang and Mubarak (2014, p.26) in an evaluation of the Australian real estate stated, a major challenge in the Australian society fight against cyber crimes was the lack of real time data and information transfer as each security agency operated its own independent cyber and online evaluation unit. Therefore, the development of a centralized cyber crime technology platform will increase inter-agencies data transfers and thus increasing proactive law and security agency reaction. 2.2.2 Cyber Bullying Reduction On the other hand, the proposed technology development is bound to be successful in reducing cyber bullying. In this regard, the development of a keywords detection system will facilitate the evaluation and identification of IP addresses from which such threatening and cyber bullying messages emanated form. This, through such an IP address, ownership and use history of such devices will be applied to establish the culprits. Therefore, the unique proposed keyword detection technology application will enhance reduced cyber bullying that is a growing concern among parents with teenage children across Europe, USA, and Australia. 2.3 Unintended Technology Effects Although the above discussed technology application is bound is to increase the overall cyber security across Australia, there is the risk of unintended technology implications on the market operations. In this regard, the key concern on such a cyber security technology system development is the risk of privacy invasion as well as freedom of expression. 2.3.1 Individual Privacy Invasion The development of the proposed keywords detection technology risks the invasion of private information privacy. In this case, the proposed technology system and the development of the ACSC unit will serve as an online spyware. Consequently, this will infringe on the existing privacy to information in which the regulations in the Australian society allow for individual privacy to information without the intrusion of the legal agencies without a court of law order. As such, the spying approach in the proposed technology will expose individual and corporate information to such scrutiny without the individuals or court of law consent. In this regard, there is the risk of such information misuse in that the obtained information by the ACSC could be used and diverted to other unintended stakeholders such as organizational competitors. Therefore, this analysis lists that although unintended, the unauthorized access to private data could lead to diversion and subsequent information privacy bleach. 2.3.2 Fairness and Freedom of Expression Denial The proposed technology will be managed and operated by government funded agencies, working directly under the Attorney General and the Minister of Defense. Therefore, this poses the risk of such a privilege misuse. For instance, as Dubelaar, Jevons and Parker (2003, p.67) in an evaluation of the consumer buying data risk on the internet noted, in the event that the transferred information highlights on challenges and vices facing the government of the day, there is the risk of such information interjection, reducing the freedom of information and speech in the market, in that the transfer and hosting of such data would be denied, with allegations to security and public safety. Moreover, this would reduce the ability for the current popular online whistle blowing, where anonymous individuals, release important public interest information, remaining anonymous for their own safety and well being. Hence, the adoption of the proposed technology and the IP address tracking system would expose such relevant society whistle blowers in the society, thus limiting freedom of expression, as well as safety of online whistle blowers. 2.4 Recommendations In order to counter the challenges of civil rights violations through privacy invasion and unauthorized personal and corporate data access, with reference to Dolnicar and Jordaan (2006, p.42) argument, this analysis recommends the inclusion of interest groups in the agency governance board. In this regard, such interest groups would include the presence of companies’ association representatives and civil rights groups’ representation. As such, the presence of such a taskforce would on a regular basis, minimally annually, evaluate the operations of the agency and evaluate any intentional access to private data with no security justifications for such a move. In this regard, the task force, an independent workforce would ensure rationality in the technology operations as measure to ensure that the government does not unjustly use the agency privilege to access data and information as an approach to exert influence through information freedom and rights suppression. References Australian Cyber Security Center, 2015, ACSC – Australian Cyber Security Centre, Australian Government: Department of Defence. [Online] Available at < http://www.asd.gov.au/infosec/acsc.htm > [Accessed February 1, 2015]. Dolnicar, S. & Jordaan, Y. 2006, "Protecting Consumer Privacy in the Company's Best Interest", Australasian Marketing Journal, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 39-61. Dubelaar, C., Jevons, C. & Parker, L. 2003, "Personal Information Privacy and Shopping Behavior on the Internet", Journal of Asia Pacific Marketing, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 65-74. Edwards, D. 2010, "Robust ICSs Critical for Guarding Against Cyber Threats", American Water Works Association.Journal, vol. 102, no. 11, pp. 30-33. Mani, D., Kim-Kwang, R. & Mubarak, S. 2014, "Information security in the South Australian real estate industry", Information Management & Computer Security, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 24-41. Pawlak, P. & Wendling, C. 2013, "Trends in cyberspace: can governments keep up?", Environment Systems & Decisions, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 536-543. Radu, R. 2013, "Negotiating meanings for security in the cyberspace", Info : the Journal of Policy, Regulation and Strategy for Telecommunications, Information and Media, vol. 15, no. 6, pp. 32-41. Rafiqi, O. 2006, "Is the internet just destined to be an enormous electronic free newspaper?", Qualitative Market Research, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 105-107. The Australian Government, 2015, The Australian Cyber Security Centre ISIO. [Online] Available at < http://www.asio.gov.au/ASIO-and-National-Security/Partners/The-Australian-Cyber-Security-Centre.html > [Accessed February 1, 2015]. Tofan, D.C., Andrei, M.L. & Dinca, L.M. 2012, "Cyber Security Policy. A methodology for Determining a National Cyber-Security Alert Level", Informatica Economica, vol. 16, no. 2, pp. 103-115. Read More