GCSB collaboration with cloud service providers wins industry award

Collaboration between the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) and two major cloud service providers has been judged the best security project in the annual information security industry iSANZ awards(external link).

The GCSB worked with Microsoft and Amazon Web Services to have its government information security standards(external link) (NZISM) built into product templates for the deployment of cloud products.

The GCSB’s Director-General, Andrew Hampton, said the collaboration with Microsoft and Amazon Web Services recognises the importance of government working closely with private-sector providers to ensure information security is built into the development and deployment of systems across all phases of their lifecycle.

“In recent years, we have seen malicious actors increasingly exploit vulnerabilities in supply chains. It is more important than ever that cyber security is seen as an end-to-end consideration.

“By incorporating the NZISM standards(external link) into their cloud products, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services are making it easier for government and private-sector customers to ensure the security of their cloud deployments.

“We really appreciate the effort and commitment from them in collaborating with us to deliver these initiatives.”

Mr Hampton said more than 400 organisations have deployed cloud instances using the NZISM baseline security controls to ensure their security resilience reflects our national information security standards.

“This is example of the great work of our teams engaging with providers and public sector partners to increase the cyber security resilience across NZ.

“We look forward to continued engagement with cloud providers and their customers as part of our ongoing work,” Mr Hampton said.

 The other finalists in the iSANZ award category for Best Security Project or Security Awareness Initiative were Education Arcade for its interactive, story-driven cyber security games and content; and BNZ for its sustained cyber security awareness campaign targeting staff, customers and partners.