In Australia’s National Interest - Security of Critical Infrastructure

The Enhanced CIRMP Rules 2026 introduce the most significant expansion of Australia's Critical Infrastructure Risk Management Program (CIRMP) framework since its inception. But beyond the additional legislative obligations lies a more important question: what do these changes reveal about the future direction of Australia's critical infrastructure regulation? In this episode, Tim Slattery...

Why do so many capable and experienced leaders underestimate insider threat within their own organisations? In this episode, Tim Slattery and Marina Shteinberg from Pentagram Advisory explore the psychology behind the "Not In My Organisation" (NIMO) mindset—a common but often overlooked leadership blind spot that can prevent organisations from recognising and addressing insider risk. Dra...

Pentagram's case study of U.S. citizen Jareh Sebastian Dalke who worked the the National Security Agency and became an insider threat there. He stole top secret information and tried to sell that information to Russia.

If you are fascinated by Harry Potter, psychology, human behaviour, and the complex realities of protective security — this episode is for you. What do Harry Potter and insider threat have in common? More than you might think. In this episode, Tim Slattery and Marina Shteinberg from Pentagram Advisory explores the surprisingly sophisticated insider threat lessons hidden within the world of Hogwart...

In this episode, Tim Slattery and Marina Shteinberg from Pentagram Advisory explore what the recently updated CIRMP annual reporting form may reveal about the evolving expectations of the Department of Home Affairs surrounding governance, operational resilience, assurance, and Board accountability under the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 . The discussion examines the broader shift fr...

When employees leave, it is often treated as a process — access removed, systems closed, the relationship ended. But for people, it is a moment of change. A shift in identity, status and direction — shaped by how that experience is perceived. At the same time, for organisations, this is often when risk is most concentrated. Knowledge remains. Relationships continue. And control begins to reduce. S...

Insider threat is the misuse by a trusted person of privileged access to, or influence over, assets and operations.  The trusted person’s actions may be unintentional, or their actions may be intentional.  In either instance the harm caused can be the same.  But to become an ‘insider’ a person has to be granted admission. Australian media reported in April 2026 that an employee of the New South Wa...

Insider threat is the misuse by a trusted person of privileged access to assets and operations.  The trusted person’s actions may be unintentional or they may be intentional.  In either instance the harm caused can be the same. Organisations make a choice to grant trust to a person when they decide to employ them.  But the pre-employment screening process is really a point-in-time security check w...

In March 2026, the Commonwealth Government published the Independent Review of the  Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018.  The intent of the Review, conducted by Dr Jill Slay between November 2025 and January 2026, was to assess whether Australia's  Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018  (SOCI Act) is achieving its intended objectives, functioning as intended, and is not produci...

The recent fire at Viva Energy’s Geelong refinery has been widely reported as an industrial incident. But what does it reveal about Australia’s broader vulnerability when disruption occurs at nationally critical assets? In this episode, we move beyond cause and examine consequence — exploring how disruption to a single node in a highly concentrated and globally dependent system can have cascading...

Insider risk rarely appears suddenly. In this episode, we explore why behavioural change is often the earliest warning signal — long before systems detect a problem. Learn how insider risk develops over time, how to recognise subtle behavioural indicators, and how organisations can respond early through human-centric approaches, strong culture, and proportionate action. Technology detects events....

This article explores the risks and consequence for Australia stemming from the 2026 war with Iran and resultant oil supply shock.

Why People Protect the Organisation What drives people to act in the organisation’s interest—especially when no one is watching? In this episode, we explore why security is not sustained by controls alone, but by human behaviour. We examine the role of intrinsic motivation, trust, and purpose in shaping security culture, and how these factors influence insider risk. Drawing on insights from workfo...

Pentagram Advisory Pty Ltd invites you to watch and / or listen this recording of our recent article about the risks that war with Iran poses to Australia's critical infrastructure entities. Whilst critical infrastructure entity attack surfaces span a myriad of threat vectors, including cyber attacks, Pentagram's article focuses on the people component - those people employed within Austra...

Insider threats rarely begin with malicious intent — they often emerge gradually as ordinary life pressures create unexpected vulnerabilities around trusted employees. In this episode,  Tim Slattery and Marina Shteinberg from Pentagram Advisory  explore the  seven risk factors behind insider vulnerability , drawn from the Australian Government Personnel Security Adjudicative Standard within the  P...

Across Australia’s critical infrastructure sectors, many organisations are working hard to comply with the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 (SOCI Act). Cyber security has matured. CIRMP frameworks are in place. Annual attestations are part of governance cycles. But is security risk truly being governed and resourced proportionately to exposure? In this episode, Pentagram Advisory explo...

How do you strengthen workforce assurance for existing employees — without creating the very insider risk you’re trying to reduce? In this episode, Pentagram Advisory explores one of the most sensitive challenges facing critical infrastructure organisations: introducing a Trusted Workforce Program into an established workforce. As regulatory expectations evolve and insider threat becomes more visi...

Workforce assurance is now a strategic security capability for Australia’s critical infrastructure sectors. In this episode, we explore how organisations can build defensible workforce assurance for non-citizen offshore applicants whose personal, professional, and behavioural history may sit largely outside Australian systems. We examine why traditional, point-in-time background checking alone can...

In this final episode of Pentagram Advisory’s three-part Workforce Assurance in Critical Infrastructure  series, we explore why trust cannot stop at the point of hiring — and why the highest personnel security risks often emerge long after someone has joined an organisation.  From ongoing suitability and the critical role of reporting, to treating offboarding as a security event and recognising po...

The Bondi Beach massacre in December 2025 is the most deadly and consequential terrorist attack on Australian soil. That it happened is a national tragedy. That it happened is not a surprise. Pentagram's podcast explores the possible consequences for Australia's society, for people - be they Muslim, Jew or gentile - and how this might affect people in the workplace, with particular focus o...

Pre-employment screening in critical infrastructure is often treated as a compliance step — a set of standard checks applied to every role, regardless of the risk it carries. But this approach rarely delivers real security assurance. In this episode, we explain how organisations can move beyond generic, outsourced background checks and build proportionate, risk-led pre-employment screening  in-hou...

In this episode, we explore why many critical infrastructure organisations continue to rely on the AusCheck background check as their primary assurance measure — and why that reliance creates a dangerous illusion of safety. AusCheck provides coordinated, point-in-time background checking that is primarily focused on identifying terrorism-related and criminal risks. It does not provide an understan...

Beyond Compliance with the SOCI Act: Why Effective Security Risk Management Matters More Than a ‘Compliant’ CIRMP A Pentagram Advisory perspective As organisations across Australia’s critical infrastructure sectors continue to mature under the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018, many Boards and executives are asking a familiar question:  Are we compliant? In this episode,  Pentagram Advi...

In October and November 2025, the heads of Australia’s two most significant strategic intelligence assessment agencies made public their views on the geostrategic threats confronting Australia today.  In those remarks, both leaders set out some of the threats and explored some of the consequences that could be inflicted upon Australia, including Australia’s critical infrastructure assets, if actio...

In this episode, we explore why understanding the  whole person  is essential to managing insider threats across Australia’s critical infrastructure sectors. Drawing on decades of national security experience, the discussion examines why insider threat remains one of the most complex and misunderstood challenges under the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018 (SOCI Act). We unpack the behav...