Thinking - Pentagram Advisory

Board responsibilities for approving the CIRMP annual report under the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018: What directors need to know

As the regulatory environment for Australian critical infrastructure grows more stringent, boards and directors of ‘responsible entities’ covered by the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 (SOCI Act) must pay close attention to their oversight obligations in relation to security risks. As responsible entities are preparing to submit their annual report to the regulator Department of Home Affairs […]

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In the National Interest – Critical Infrastructure as a National Security Priority

Article / pentagramadvisory

Prologue Critical infrastructure is a fundamental enabler of Australia’s national security. Australian governments over decades have recognised the need to protect critical infrastructure from evolving threats as a component of national security yet have offered policy guidance with little effective action. Government has put the onus for action onto the private sector to protect nationally critical

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Observing the absence of usual or the presence of unusual: a new lens on insider threat reporting

Article / pentagramadvisory

In today’s increasingly digital operating environments, organisations rely more than ever on technological solutions and artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor insider threats. Sophisticated systems now track access to data, analyse sentiment, and detect behavioural anomalies. While AI can analyse data patterns and flag deviations from the norm, it lacks the nuanced, contextual understanding that humans bring. Often,

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Insider threat – the trusted worker with ideological challenges

Article / pentagramadvisory

What happens when someone inside the system, entrusted with national secrets, begins to see another country as their true allegiance? This is the dilemma posed by insider threats – trusted individuals who, whether by intent or negligence, cause harm to the organisations that trust them and rely on them. Within the Australian federal government exists a

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Foreign interference and critical infrastructure: Australia’s expanding national security challenge

Article / pentagramadvisory

“Foreign interference is no longer a hypothetical threat – it is active, evolving, and targeting the systems that underpin our nation’s security.” Mike Burgess, ASIO Director-General, 2025 Threat Assessment According to the 2025 Annual Threat Assessment delivered by ASIO Director-General Mike Burgess, foreign interference and espionage are occurring at “extreme levels” and are “set to increase further”. The

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Insider Threat – Ambulance Victoria

Article / pentagramadvisory

Reporting in March 2025 exposed that Ambulance Victoria had suffered an insider threat event. Media reported that Ambulance Victoria suspected that a “rogue member of staff” had stolen personal and financial data of up to 3,000 Ambulance Victoria members. Reportedly, this ‘rogue member’ had recently ended their employment with Ambulance Victoria, but before they left, on their final day,

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Insider Threat – Luddites in the workplace

Article / pentagramadvisory

A lesson from history – why workers today might sabotage emerging workplace technology. The tsunami of artificial intelligence – AI – that has swamped many facets of peoples’ lives, communications, IT-based activities, leisure, and employment is relentless, and the flooding will likely penetrate even further into the uplands of society and the economy. The force of

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Insider Threat Mitigation Advice for Critical Infrastructure Entities

Article / pentagramadvisory

Prologue In February 2025, the United States National Counterintelligence and Security Center (or NCSC) released a report titled Insider Threat Mitigation for U.S. Critical Infrastructure Entities – Guidelines from an Intelligence Perspective. Pentagram Advisory is flagging this report with our followers because its insights are equally valid for Australia’s critical infrastructure owners and operators, as defined by Australia’s Security

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Insider Threat: An approach to identifying psychosocial hazards to mitigate insider threat

Article / pentagramadvisory

When does a trusted employee become a risk? Insider threats do not emerge overnight—they are often the result of a gradual shift driven by workplace and personal factors. While organisations focus on technical defences, they can overlook the human element: the psychosocial hazards that can turn loyal employees into potential insider threats. To explore this

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In the National Interest – Two Recent Insider Threat Events in Australia

Article / pentagramadvisory

In the workplace setting an employer provides money and / or other benefits to a person in exchange for their labour, knowledge, and time. The relationship is formally set out in a contract which details obligations that fall upon both the employer and employee, contractor, or volunteer – a principle known as quid pro quo. Examples of obligations

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