The number of breaches was an increase from the 132 reported the prior year, even though New Zealand doesn't have a mandatory data breach notification scheme. [ + ]

The NSW Government will work with Hitachi, after the two organisations recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). [ + ]

A new Chief Digital Officer has just been appointed by the Australian Digital Health Agency. [ + ]

A digital initiatives showcase has been held in Wellington, demonstrating the use of AI technology on government websites. [ + ]

The Civil Service Operational Excellence Award has been taken out by the GOV.UK team. [ + ]

A virtual assistant named Sam has been rolled out across the Queensland Office of State Revenue (OSR). [ + ]

The DTA is exploring ways to enshrine the privacy requirements of the Trusted Digital Identity Framework in legislation or contractual obligations. [ + ]

A new inquiry into automated mass transit has been launched by the House of Representatives Infrastructure, Transport and Cities Committee. [ + ]

The Digital Transformation Agency aims to transform government ICT procurement into 'digital sourcing' under its procurement reform program. [ + ]

The Department of Human Services website has received gold certification from the Australian Plain English Foundation. [ + ]

Former ANZ Bank CTO Michael McNamara will take the role of CIO of the Department of Human Services a year after the departure of its previous permanent CIO. [ + ]

A new digital assistant named Charles has been rolled out across the myGov website. [ + ]

An autonomous public transport vehicle will be trialled by the City of Newcastle in 2019. [ + ]

The Local Government Association of South Australia is negotiating to use the Australian-developed Squiz Matrix software as a new local government CMS. [ + ]

The NSW Government has welcomed input from its New Zealand counterpart that will help inform its life journey mapping initiative. [ + ]