TAFE Queensland adds Essential Eight to its cyber security offer

Essential Eight is the most effective mitigation strategy developed by the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), aimed at helping organisations better protect themselves against cyber threats.

Through the Essential Eight Assessment Course, participants access the tools the ASD designed, gaining the skills to assess and review an organisation’s cyber security network.

“I’m extremely excited and honoured to be qualified to deliver the Essential Eight Assessment Course through TAFE Queensland to information technology professionals in our state,” said Mikel-John.

“Through the delivery of this course, I will assist participants in forming a greater understanding, consistency, and standard during Essential Eight audits, intending to improve the cyber security networks,” he continued.

Delivered face-to-face at the South Bank campus over four days, the Essential Eight course uses specialist knowledge and hands-on technical training to strengthen participants' organisational cyber security practices.

The Essential Eight Assessment Course was also developed in collaboration with TAFECyber, a consortium of TAFE institutions from around Australia, focused on upskilling the cyber security workforce through education and training.

The Essential Eight Assessment Course covers how to audit the prevention of executing malicious software and installers, patching devices with extreme risk vulnerabilities and maintaining and retaining information and data.

“This course is aimed at participants from organisations that are required to audit and to be audited using the Essential Eight Maturity Model,” continued Mikel-John.

Participants must be Australian citizens or permanent residents and require a minimum of a Certificate IV in a technical ICT discipline and two years of experience in a technical or governance ICT role or four years in a technical or governance ICT role.

“Participants will learn the intent and application of the Essential Eight, how to use Australian Signals Directorate-designed tools and accurately test the implementation of the Essential Eight strategies,” said Mikel-John.

Essential Eight Assessment participants who complete the course leave with a solid understanding of the required cyber security standards their organisation must meet and how to ensure they are implemented correctly through quality auditing methods.

“As the state's largest and most experienced training provider, TAFE Queensland is committed to providing training and education that strengthens the cyber security of industry and government organisations across the state,” he said.

“The addition of the Essential Eight Assessment Course will also assist the IT industry to achieve a greater standard of comparable and consistent audit outcomes for all organisations.”

“This, in turn, will raise the cyber security maturity across all sectors and allow for greater protections from the ever-evolving threats within cyberspace,” concluded Mikel-John.