Brief: Integrating Catastrophic Risk into the Critical Infrastructure Annual Risk Review
This brief provides a short overview of catastrophic risk and its implications for critical infrastructure risk management in Australia. It provides a recommendation for the Critical Infrastructure Security Centre’s (CISC) 2025 Critical Infrastructure Annual Risk Review (CIARR). Summary Over the next decade, catastrophic risk – the risk of events or incidents that would significantly harm […]
Submission to Senate Standing Committees on Environment and Communications Climate Risk Assessment Inquiry
Executive summary Read the full submission.
Why Australia Needs an AI Act
Australia’s artificial intelligence (AI) policy debate is at a crossroads. Decisions made in the coming months will determine whether Australians are able to trust AI and capture its benefits or whether we are left exposed to unacceptable and avoidable risk. Calls to wait for yet further reviews ignore the evidence that action is needed now. […]
Submission to the Department of Home Affairs’ Consultation on Horizon 2 of the 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy
Global Shield Australia welcomes the opportunity to provide a submission to the Department of Home Affairs’ Consultation on Developing Horizon 2 of the 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy. Global Shield Australia is an independent, non-profit policy advocacy organisation dedicated to reducing global catastrophic risk. We take an all-hazards approach to preparedness, supporting governments to enact […]
Safeguarding Australia’s Food System Security
Australia benefits from a world-class, highly productive food sector. The success of our food sector is critical to our economy, national security, and resilience. However, our agricultural abundance should not give us false confidence. The House Standing Committee on Agriculture’s 2023 report, Australian Food Story: Feeding the Nation and Beyond, found that: “Despite Australia being […]
AI Risk Primer: Why Safeguards Are Essential
This Global Shield Australia primer details AI-related harms already occurring in Australia and overseas, and the far greater dangers coming in the near future. These demonstrate the clear need for government action to safeguard Australians and build the trust necessary to realise the benefits of AI. AI is already causing harm, current AI models have… […]
Ensuring Accountability: The Need for Post-Deployment Monitoring of AI in Australia
The Policy Challenge The Australian Government has recognised the need to regulate AI development and deployment in Australia. However, the nature of this technology means that it is not possible to fully predict its real-world consequences nor prevent all of its possible harms, especially for General Purpose AI (GPAI). These harms will emerge unpredictably from […]
Preparedness for mandatory guardrails for AI systems failing in high-risk settings
Artificial intelligence (AI) systems pose major ethical, social, economic and security challenges for Australia. Of considerable concern to AI experts and the companies at the leading edge of AI development is that powerful AI systems will exacerbate the risk of catastrophic harm to society. AI risk could be particularly catastrophic if it intersects with nuclear […]
Submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security inquiry into the Cyber Security Legislative Package 2024
The Security of Critical Infrastructure and Other Legislation Amendment (Enhanced Response and Prevention) Bill 2024, included within the Cyber Security Legislative Package, is an important upgrade in Australia’s ability to deal with major national crises and incidents. In this regard, Global Shield strongly supports this bill, in particular its intention to enable the Government to […]