Courseware for a new national rail cybersecurity training program is now in the final stages of development, with a pilot program set to run later this year.
The four-day program, driven by the National Transport Commission (NTC), is being developed by Holmesglen Institute with support from TAFEcyber and will be delivered through TAFEs across Australia.
As cyber threats evolve rapidly, the risks facing the rail industry are expected to change significantly. Upskilling the workforce is a critical step in strengthening the sector’s resilience and improving cyber risk management capabilities.
The NTC’s cyber skills program takes an applied learning approach that teaches cybersecurity for both information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) environments, to help rail professionals operate safely and securely across modern rail systems.
NTC Chief Executive Officer Michael Hopkins said the course has been designed to help people designing and working with OT systems to communicate and engage more effectively with IT specialists so they can better identify threats and vulnerabilities and manage cyber risks in their work environment.
Participants will develop skills in areas such as cyber risk awareness, critical infrastructure protection, and incident response that can be immediately applied to projects and day-to-day operations.
An NTC gap analysis found that by 2027, 40 per cent of rail roles will be impacted by technology, with 13,000 new digital specialist roles needed across train control and signalling systems. With digital capability varying widely across the workforce, courses like this help lift industry skills and expand TAFE-led rail training.
For more information, contact the NTC at enquiries@ntc.gov.au