BATHURST will get "an industry for life" after it was announced as the home of a Cyber Security Vulnerability Management Centre, a first for regional NSW.
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Member for Bathurst Paul Toole was joined by Minister for Customer Service Victor Dominello on Monday to reveal the news, following on from last week's record $240 million investment into cyber security.
The centre will strengthen the NSW Government's cyber security capabilities and create jobs in Bathurst.
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The centre has been in development for months and already there are eight new jobs on the ground in Bathurst, with that number to double in 12 months.
Mr Dominello said it was "a historic occasion".
"When you think about cyber security, you traditionally think about big cities and that big muscle in the cities to protect the whole state, the whole nation," he said.
"What we've done today is we've broken that paradigm. We've realised, as a result of the pandemic, that you can't put all your eggs in one basket; we've seen that in relation to supply lines, we can equally see that in relation to cyber.
"Not everything belongs in the city. We do need strong, regional cyber satellites and today we're launching one, right here in Bathurst, and it's so perfect because it's literally next to Spatial Services, which is another jewel in the crown here of NSW."
Spatial Services was a key reason in Bathurst being chosen as the location for the centre, as was the presence of Charles Sturt University as a place to draw talent from.
The centre will be able to respond should there be a major cyber security attack, but on an everyday basis staff will be responsible for proactive monitoring so there is early detection of any vulnerabilities.
Mr Dominello said this industry will continue to evolve in Bathurst.
"We're not just creating eight jobs and double that over a year, we're creating an industry here," he said.
"It's not like you're building a house and then the circus moves on and you build the house in the next city or the next town; once you create a job here, this is an industry for life."
Mr Toole has welcomed the additional jobs to Bathurst, both immediate and into the future, and has stressed the important role those people have to play.
"If there is a cyber attack, in today's world that is no different to a terrorist attack, so we need to have the mechanisms in play, we need to ensure that we can combat the issues that we're going to see around cyber risk into the future and the team that is actually working here on the ground is going to ensure that they deliver that," he said.
Other regional areas will have similar centres in the future, but those locations and a timeframe for when that will occur is unable to be commented on at this time.