Whakapuakitanga
Foreword
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), a part of the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB), is Aotearoa New Zealand’s lead operational cyber security agency. An important organisational milestone was reached in the past financial year, when New Zealand’s Computer Emergency Response Team was transferred from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) to the NCSC. This integration process, when completed, will result in an agency that provides cyber security services to all New Zealanders – from individuals and small to medium enterprises, through to nationally significant organisations.
This Cyber Threat Report outlines the NCSC’s view of the domestic threat landscape for the year from 01 July 2023 to 30 June 2024. The report provides insight into the scope and nature of cyber threats targeting the information and systems of New Zealand organisations and individuals. The report identifies and analyses some of the common, recurring techniques that malicious cyber actors have used in cyber incidents.
The information in this report is primarily intended to support the work of cyber security practitioners and researchers, as well as cyber security decision makers. However, anyone with an interest in cyber security may find the report informative, and I encourage all New Zealanders to build their understanding of cyber security. This is the first reporting year in which the NCSC has compiled a whole-of-economy overview of cyber threats. While still drawn from separate data sets, in this report readers can begin to see the extent to which our country’s entire economy is being impacted by malicious
cyber activity.
This year’s report illustrates how malicious cyber activity affects every part of New Zealand society. Good cyber security awareness and practices help to protect against the harm this malicious activity can cause. This report encourages familiarity with the cyber landscape and better understanding of the techniques and tactics used by malicious cyber actors, and recommends steps to mitigate them. Through good decisions and action, New Zealand can become a place where good cyber security happens everywhere, all the time, by everyone.
Lisa Fong (she/her)
Deputy Director-General Cyber Security