Author: E-Yang Tang

At CGI, we’re heavily focused on critical infrastructure and financial services – so our work is vital. By protecting against threats to these industries, we are protecting the public’s way of life and the health and safety of all Australians.

But what really goes on ‘behind the curtain’ in the Cybersecurity and Digital Services team at CGI? Here’s an inside look at our current projects and our innovative culture.

What are we working on at the moment?

Recently, we’ve been working hard on a number of projects within the critical infrastructure cybersecurity space:

  • SOAR (Security Orchestration, Automation and Response) – a collection of software solutions and tools that enable CGI to streamline security operations in threat and vulnerability management, incident response, and security operations automation. Improving accuracy of detection, reducing response times and elevating the experience for our clients.
  • IOT and Cybersecurity – Traditionally, security controls are deemed to be too heavy for IOT devices, however the issue dissipates with the advent of 5G. CGI is investing and building cybersecurity solutions on the edge, taking off processing load away from the IOT devices. At the same time maintaining security from a cyber-physical perspective.

When working with new projects or testing technology, we create a sandbox and an environment in which we can safely use these innovations. This helps us to determine which projects are useful and which don’t meet our high availability requirements, such as operational performance.

If a project is deemed unsuitable, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s obsolete – especially in an automated critical infrastructure environment. With the ever changing threat landscape, the innovation can be used in another context. For those who have been in security for the past few decades, remember “The Year of the PKI”?

In the case of COVID-19, we have been assisting power and utilities clients who are still operating on the frontline in staying protected against malicious activity. Sadly, these threats are being ramped up, so we are playing our part in keeping essential services safe and open.

Why is CGI a great place to work for cybersecurity experts?

At CGI, we call our staff ‘members’ as the majority of employees are shareholders in CGI. Being personally invested means working at CGI is like working for a company you own. In the cybersecurity realm, if you remediate a threat for CGI, it’s akin to remediating a threat for your own business. 

We’re always looking at ways to improve our members’ experiences at work, and as the industry constantly evolves, our hiring and training processes do too. We’re constantly updating our training content with the latest and the greatest, from “Business Leadership Negotiation” courses to “Sharpen your Cybersecurity hunting instinct in the OT” courses. We’re enabling our members to be market ready.

During the pandemic, we’ve also been taking measures to maintain our great workplace culture and look after our members in the current remote working circumstances. For example, rapidly acknowledging the isolating effects of strict during lockdown in Victoria, CGI initiated additional health and wellbeing support especially in area of mental health.  This included inviting external providers to coach on topics such as mindfulness and resilience, training members (including myself) in mental health first aid and awareness and creating a mental health first aid network..

It’s initiatives like these that are helping us stay healthy and happy, and ensuring every member of our organisation is supported.

Want to tackle cybersecurity challenges in an environment where you’re empowered to drive your career? Find out more about career opportunities at CGI.