Penten to help regional SMEs with cyber security

Canberra based cyber security firm Penten has been awarded a contract of undisclosed value from AustCyber, the Australian Cyber Security Growth Network, to provide secure network access to a pilot group of regional SMEs and research institutions.

Under this pilot project, Penten will provide a desktop security device based on its AltoCrypt technology to enable SMEs and university researchers to bid for and win work on classified government projects using a secure and protected link.

The company says regional SMEs will no longer be excluded from classified defence projects due to the cost and complexity of establishing secure IT systems.

As well as providing secure access to work opportunities, this secure mobility service raises the level of cyber protection of the businesses and researchers involved, says Penten. For academia specifically, the project will foster the acceleration of both sensitive R&D and multi-partner collaboration, both domestically and internationally.

After the pilot project has proved the utility of this approach, it is planned to roll out the service to a wider network of defence industry players.

In mid-2019 Penten announced a $2.2 million contract from the Defence Innovation Hub to develop cyber defences for the Australian Army, enabling it to communicate over unsecured networks, monitor network traffic and mitigate attacks on its own network.