Wednesday, November 18, 2026

11:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Menzies Theatre

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Presentation Outline

Australia's cyber threat environment is evolving faster than traditional workforce models can respond. At the same time, significant civilian cyber expertise remains outside formal national resilience arrangements. The Cyber Civilian Reserve (CCR), founded by Vertical Scope Group (VSG), was Launched on 26 January 2026 to address this gap by creating a trusted, industry-led mechanism that mobilises Australia's civilian cyber capability in support of national resilience. Since its launch on Australia Day 2026, the Cyber Civilian Reserve has progressed from a strategic concept to a structured national initiative with defined governance, operating principles and capability streams. The presentation will provide a comprehensive update on the Reserve's development, including its operating model, deployment framework, membership structure and partnership ecosystem. It will explain how the CCR complements existing national capabilities, including the Australian Defence Force Cyber Reserve Force. Participants will gain insight into the capability gap the CCR seeks to address: the absence of a coordinated mechanism to mobilise Australia's civilian cyber expertise before, during and after significant cyber incidents. The session will outline the CCR's objectives, the capability streams it is establishing, and the services it is intended to deliver while also defining the activities that remain outside its scope, such as offensive cyber operations, military command functions, law enforcement activities and commercial managed security services. The presentation will also share progress made across governance, legal establishment, advisory structures, government engagement, industry partnerships, and the development of an operational model designed to enable trusted, scalable and nationally coordinated civilian cyber capability.

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Speaker