Volunteer Cyber Forces to Strengthen Australia’s Defence

This is the Executive Summary of a report from SCI Senior Fellow, Professor Dan Svantesson, and his co-author, Dr Samuli Haataja. It is published by Bond University. It is the main product of a grant from the Australian Department of Defence under its Strategic Policy Grants program. Dan is a Professor at the Faculty of Law, Bond University, a 2025 Fellow at the Norwegian Nobel Institute, and an Associated Researcher at the Swedish Law & Informatics Research institute, Stockholm University. Samuli is an Associate Professor at Griffith Law School, Griffith University.

Australia should harness the capability provided by civilians and develop volunteer cyber forces as part of a whole-of-society approach to national defence and cyber resilience.

In addition to cybersecurity functions, volunteer cyber forces may be eYectively utilised in relation to Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), information and cognitive conflict, as well as espionage and proactive cyber activities.

A number of States internationally, including key allies, already have civilian cyber reserve structures in place in order to address workforce shortages and increase cyber preparedness in society. Such volunteer cyber forces perform a range of functions ranging from education and awareness raising in society, to incident response. Having these structures in place in peacetime also provides a potential capacity that can be harnessed in times of crisis or conflict.

Lessons from the States studied in this report, namely Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Taiwan, Ukraine, and the United States, demonstrate that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ model to developing a volunteer cyber force. Australia should develop volunteer cyber forces suited to its governance and organisational structures, taking into account its geography and local conditions.

The volunteer cyber forces may include youth organisations either drawing upon current structures such as ‘Air Force cadets’, or by developing new cyber-focused youth organisations.

Volunteer cyber forces may specifically seek to recruit senior Australians. Doing so limits the competition for talent with the private sector and other organisations.

Steps may be taken to facilitate cooperation and coordination with Australia’s friends and allies as more States develop volunteer cyber forces.

There are a number of legal considerations under both domestic and international law that must be factored in when developing volunteer cyber forces. These considerations greatly depend on the activities undertaken by the volunteer cyber forces and the context in which they operate. Volunteer cyber force members must be informed about the relevant legal considerations and potential risks associated with their activities.

The Report concludes with 15 recommendations.