Fujitsu to expand cybersecurity services in APAC ‘within a year’

Fujitsu plans to expand its cybersecurity services in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region within the next year, according to the firm’s Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) cybersecurity lead Stuart Kilduff.

Speaking to CRN Australia in April 2024, Kilduff said “within a year [the cybersecurity division will] be functional within APAC; that’s absolutely the goal.”

“Graeme Beardsell [CEO of Fujistu APAC]…he’s been crystal clear he wants us having this new capability and offering in APAC, in ASEAN as soon as possible,” he said.

Fujistu launched its ANZ cybersecurity services division in April 2024.

Comprising around 300 staff, the division unified the expertise of recent acquisitions including Melbourne data and AI consultancy Versor, Canberra Microsoft partner oobe, Wellington security firm InPhySec and Canberra digital transformation company MF & Associates.

“Part of the acquisition process is to identify those areas where we need to move faster, where our capability already exists and the workforce is heavily in demand…where we can use an acquisition to speed up that process for us as Fujitsu,” said Kilduff.

“We've really focused on filling the gaps that we don't have and making sure that we have a really good end to end digital experience, so each of these acquisitions have been really targeted around filling those gaps in capability or enhancing existing capability.”

“…as we grow into APAC, which is where we're heading with this, and including ASEAN in this division, we're going to need that depth.”

Capabilities from acquisitions

Kilduff explained that Versor, which was acquired by Fujitsu in April 2021, has “a really good capability around securing data and implementing AI in a way that's ensuring the right people have the right access and the right use of AI.”

“…we're doing a lot of pre-assessment work around those sorts of things to make sure that we use the lessons that Versor have taught us around how to secure and make sure that AI doesn't have any unintended consequences within an organisation,” he said.

oobe, which was acquired in February 2022, saw the division add “a rich availability of cybersecurity services within defence, intelligence, federal government, as well as some east coast commercial companies.”

Acquired in September 2022, InPhySec provided “some really specialist digital forensics capability” as well as “our AI enhanced security operation center.”

“They've just brought a level of maturity to the entire cybersecurity suite that's been fantastic for all of us in the sense that that's all they do; they live, they breathe, they taught cybersecurity, so they've really lifted up the base for the rest of us to operate at that pure cyber level.”

Kilduff said MF & Associates, which Fujitsu acquired in September 2023, has contributed cybersecurity advisory services.

“…they do a lot of work in government and commercial and they do a lot of charitable work as well around advising and setting up organisations to be in a good position for their cyber posture and their incident response, to be ready for those things and understand the risk across their organisation,” he said.