EMC Australia has won a $6.4 million contract to design and deliver a Tier-1 Storage Environment for the Department of Defence’s new Sydney data centre. Defence signed a ten year lease for the use of the data centre with Global Switch in 2010. It will replace the Department’s current enterprise data centre at Deakin, Canberra.
Defence has also approached the market for the supply of video-conferencing equipment. Tenders close on 25 January 2012.
The scope of ICT responsibility held by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) continues to grow, with cybersecurity policy falling within its remit as a result of a cabinet reshuffle on 12 December. The policy responsibility previously sat within the Attorney General's portfolio.
PM&C has also been made a lead agency as part of the Intenet Gateway Reduction Program, and approached the market last week to establish the necessary infrastructure.
Government agencies have been warned that they could be in breach of the Privacy Act every time they use a digital photocopier or multi-function device in the office.
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner has sent out an alert advising that “any agency or organisation whose employees use office facilities to scan or copy personal information may be inadvertently accumulating and storing [client] information,” as many of these devices store scanned information as part of the copying process.
The OAIC has advised agencies to seek advice from their suppliers about products that automatically scanned images once operations are completed.
Innovation Minister Senator Kim Carr has publically endorsed a report by the Information Technology Industry Innovation Council, which outlines the range or opportunities that cloud computing offers to both the public and private sectors in Australia.
"I have also shared the report with my Ministerial colleagues with responsibility for the digital economy, whole of government ICT procurement and cyber-security issues," Senator Carr said in a statement.
The NSW Auditor-General, Peter Achterstraat has voiced his doubts about NSW Education and Communities’ Learning Management and Business Reform (LMBR) project, aimed at replacing finance, human resources and payroll systems across the department.
“I am concerned that another large Government IT project is failing to deliver, is over budget and is behind schedule,” Achterstraat said of the $386 million project.
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