How to strengthen customer trust through secure cloud practices

Government agencies hold the most personal and powerful information about Australians. Every interaction, from tax returns to healthcare and social services, depends on customers trusting their data is handled responsibly.  

Maintaining that trust now relies on how effectively the government protects the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of this information, especially as agencies continue to shift systems and services to the cloud.  

It's expected that 75 per cent of organisations will use specialised accelerated cloud computing services to maximise deployment speed and optimise the scaling of their artificial intelligence operations by 2026. (1)

This move to cloud environments has redefined what security means for government. Information is no longer confined to data centres or internal networks, and now moves across interconnected systems, shared platforms, and external providers.  

The distributed model brings scalability and agility to government operations, though it also expands the attack surface, compounding the challenge of defending against cyber threats and demands agencies maintain transparency and accountability for how data is secured at every stage of its lifecycle.

Customer data is more than a collection of records: it's a public asset. A breach of that data undermines confidence in government, weakens participation in digital services, and can cause tangible harm to citizens. Government agencies must elevate their security posture from compliance-driven to trust-driven as the volume and sensitivity of information stored in the cloud grow. Best practice is no longer measured by technical controls alone; it's measured by the degree to which those controls reinforce confidence in government stewardship.

True cloud security begins with understanding where data resides and who can access it. Many agencies now operate across multiple cloud environments alongside legacy infrastructure, making visibility critical. A unified view of information assets and access permissions ensures leaders identify vulnerabilities before they become incidents. This requires mature governance, clear ownership of systems, and continuous monitoring to detect anomalies quickly.

Identity has become the modern perimeter. Protecting the point of access in an environment where users, devices, and workloads are fluid is the most effective way to protect the data itself. This is especially important as the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) predicts the security environment will become more dynamic, diverse, and degraded over the next five years. (2)  

Adopting zero-trust principles that verify every request and limit permissions to what is essential reduces the opportunity for attackers to exploit compromised credentials. This shift from network defence to identity defence reflects how agencies can harden security without hindering productivity.

However, breaches are inevitable in a threat landscape defined by persistence and sophistication, and resilience determines public confidence when prevention fails. What matters then is how quickly agencies can detect, contain, and recover. Encryption, automated backups, and well-practised incident response plans transform disruption into continuity; this is the basis of digital resilience.  

These capabilities reassure customers that their data remains protected and recoverable even in moments of crisis, though technology alone can't uphold trust.  

Effective security depends on people who understand their role in maintaining it. Every action influences the integrity of government systems, from executives making policy decisions to employees handling customer information. Ongoing education, clear communication, and a shared sense of accountability embed a culture where security becomes instinctive, not procedural.

Optimising technology and behaviour in tandem defines best practice. Agencies that align their security investments to real risk, rather than spreading resources thinly across overlapping tools, can build stronger, simpler, and more adaptive defences. Automation and intelligence let agencies focus scarce human expertise on critical analysis and response, while governance frameworks drive every initiative to support the overarching goal of protecting customer data.

Each of these practices ultimately converges on a single outcome: sustaining trust in digital government. Cloud adoption will continue to accelerate and, with it, the expectation that services remain secure and transparent. The Australian Government is focused on improving cyber security, managing cyber risks, and better supporting customers through its 2023-2030 Australian Cyber Security Strategy. (3) Customers engage with government online because they believe their information is safe, though that belief is fragile and difficult to restore if lost.

Protecting customer data is a moral and civic responsibility. Agencies that embed security into every aspect of cloud strategy from identity and governance to resilience and response can safeguard more than information. This becomes part of the foundation of public trust and the driver of digital government's next chapter.