Australian Government Cyber White Paper

The Australian Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet has issued a discussion paper "Connecting With Confidence: Optimizing Australia's Digital Future". The public is invited to contribute to what is claimed to be Australia's first "CyberWhitePaper".

Unfortunately there are a few problems with this white paper process:

1. This is not Australia's first attempt at cyber policy. There was a flurry of activity in this area in the late 1990s. There were so many parliamentary and government inquiries that Roger Clarke and myself decided to write one submission for them all. This was titled "Vision for a Networked Nation".
   
2. The document is long winded: The Australian Government is intending to start a conversation with the Australian people. But the website uses almost impenetrable language, such as:
   

   As a strategic blueprint, the White Paper will place the government’s existing initiatives and strategies within the context of a holistic and integrated framework and will highlight the central importance of partnerships with industry and community groups.

   By aligning and streamlining the government’s broad ranging cyber policy efforts, the White Paper will maximise opportunities to find efficiencies and synergies and will highlight the areas where greater effort is required. ...