Telstra secures AU$32m government internet gateway deal

Australia's largest telecommunications company, Telstra, has been chosen to migrate 11 Australian government agencies over to a new consolidated and secure internet gateway, in a deal worth over AU$32 million.

Telstra's deal follows a similar agreement signed by Macquarie Telecom last year as part of the government's Internet Gateway reduction program.

The program is designed to reduce the number of internet gateways within government, in order to save AU$25 million in costs by 2014, as well as improve efficiency and security. The government is aiming to reduce the number of gateways from 124 to eight over four years, from 2010 to 2014. In 2010, the government appointed eight lead government agencies to oversee the reduction.

The Telstra deal signed with Australian Customs and Border Protection will see 11 agencies including Customs, the Department of Finance and Deregulation, the Attorney-General's Department, and the Department of Immigration and Citizenship brought into the one gateway.

The deal covers 22,000 government staff members, and Telstra's group managing director of enterprise and government Paul Geason said that the deal will utilise Telstra's security operations centre in Canberra.

"Telstra offers secure and reliable technology through the latest advances in internet gateway technology, alongside our ability to provide an end-to-end service via the Telstra Next IP network," he said in a statement.

"The internet gateway solution will utilise Telstra's Security Operation Centre in Canberra, a maximum-security ASIO T4 certified facility that provides 'round-the-clock monitoring of Telstra's infrastructure. We will be introducing a scalable, efficient, digital-first enabling platform servicing more than 22,000 employees and securing digital communication internally and with external customers."