Defence & Government

AI for Defence

From AI foundations to the Australian defence policy stack — a four-hour intensive that equips Defence APS staff, DISP-member contractors and security professionals to use AI safely, productively and in full compliance with the PSPF and ISM.

4 hours
8 Modules
All Levels
OFFICIAL Level
Start Learning Preview Curriculum FAQ View Presentation Read the Handbook

What You’ll Learn

Eight focused modules covering AI fundamentals and the defence-specific policy, security and compliance landscape.

Understand AI Deeply

Grasp how LLMs, tokens and neural networks work — foundational knowledge for making informed decisions about AI in your organisation.

Master Prompt Engineering

Write effective prompts using the Act-Explain-Please framework to get consistently excellent results from any approved AI platform.

Navigate the Policy Stack

Confidently identify which AI tools are approved, what data can be entered, and how the PSPF, ISM and Defence Policy Settings apply to your work.

Detect Shadow AI

Recognise unsanctioned AI use in your team, run a structured self-assessment, and apply the right controls before a breach occurs.

Protect Classified Information

Apply redaction discipline and prompt hygiene to ensure OFFICIAL: Sensitive and above never enters an unauthorised AI tool.

Evaluate AI Vendors

Use a structured checklist covering IRAP, HCF certification, data residency, training opt-out and retention to assess any AI provider.

Lead AI Adoption

Draft your organisation’s AI usage policy aligned to ISM-2074 and champion safe, productive AI use across your team.

Apply the Daily Checklist

Leave with a five-point checklist — classification, approved tool, prompt hygiene, output verification, incident response — for every AI interaction.

Course Curriculum

8 modules, 22 lessons — from AI basics to your daily compliance checklist.

Educational only — not legal or security advice. Australian AI policy for government changes every quarter. This course is anchored to the PSPF Policy Advisory 001-2025 and the Defence Policy Settings for Responsible Use of AI (March 2026), and was reviewed in June 2026. Always confirm tool-specific rulings with your own security advisor or ISO.

Section A — AI Basics
01

AI Basics for Defence

3 lessons
How AI works & how it’s trained (and what happens to your data)
Prompt engineering essentials: role, context, task, format
Confidentiality & the classification boundary — the one hard line
Section B — AI for Defence: The Specifics
02

The Australian AI Policy Stack

3 lessons
The Australian AI policy hierarchy: DTA → PSPF Advisory → Defence Policy Settings
Defence’s own rules: the three obligations, the Accountable Officer & the DAIC
DISP, the Essential Eight (ML2) & ISM-2074
03

Data Sovereignty & Approved Providers

3 lessons
The approved-provider regime: the 18 providers (16 HCF + OpenAI + Anthropic)
Where the models actually process data: consumer vs enterprise; residency ≠ sovereignty
The ‘Can I use this tool?’ three-question decision flowchart
04

Shadow AI & Case Studies

3 lessons
What shadow AI is — and how common it already is
Case study: the NSW Reconstruction Authority leak (March 2025, 2,031 affected)
The Samsung leak & detecting shadow AI
05

Prompt Hygiene & Vendor Evaluation

3 lessons
Prompt hygiene & redaction: what must never be entered
Safe vs prohibited tasks at OFFICIAL
Evaluating an AI vendor: the procurement checklist & the five ToS questions
06

Adversarial Risks

2 lessons
Prompt injection — OWASP LLM01:2025 (direct, indirect & multimodal)
Model inversion & IP exposure: the three contractor leak patterns
07

Defence Industry Context

3 lessons
Your AI obligations as a DISP member
Primes & SMEs: what’s expected, and the SME baseline
AUKUS Pillar II — the hard caveat (outside the OFFICIAL framework)
08

Your Checklist & Putting It Together

2 lessons
Your daily AI-at-OFFICIAL checklist (five checks, every time)
Incident response, staying current & where next

Who This Course Is For

Defence APS Staff

Public servants in the Defence portfolio working at OFFICIAL level who use or plan to use AI tools in their daily work.

DISP-Member Contractors

Industry professionals working on Defence contracts who need to understand AI obligations under DISP and the PSPF.

Security Officers & CISOs

Chief Security Officers, CISOs and security advisors responsible for AI governance and incident response in Defence-adjacent organisations.

Procurement Officers

Professionals evaluating AI vendors and needing to understand HCF certification, IRAP assessments and FOCI requirements.

Why This Matters Now

The numbers paint a clear picture: AI adoption in government is outpacing policy, training and governance.

25%

of Australian public servants already use unauthorised AI tools at work

Mandarin / Liquid Interactive, 2025

92%

of public servants surveyed had received no AI training

CPSU, October 2024

81%

say their AI tool use was entirely self-initiated

CPSU, October 2024

2,031

people affected by the NSW Reconstruction Authority ChatGPT data breach

NSW Government, October 2025

Rupert Chesman

Your Instructor

Rupert Chesman

AI educator, filmmaker and author of The AI-Native Playbook. Rupert has taught over 700 students this year across corporate workshops, government agencies and defence-industry organisations — turning complex AI concepts into practical, immediately applicable skills.

700+ Students This Year
70+ Countries
200+ Workshops
Defence + Government

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need any technical background to take this course?

Not at all. The course assumes no prior AI experience. It opens with a short AI-basics section — how AI works and is trained, how to prompt it effectively, and the confidentiality boundary — before the defence-specific modules layer on top with clear, practical guidance.

Is this course classified or restricted?

No. All course content is drawn from publicly available policy documents, open-source research, and published case studies. The course is designed at the OFFICIAL level and does not contain or require access to any classified material.

Which AI tools does the course cover?

The course covers the approved enterprise tools most relevant to Defence: Microsoft 365 Copilot, ChatGPT Enterprise, Claude for Work, and GovAI Chat. It also explains the difference between consumer and enterprise tiers and why that distinction matters for data security.

How current is the policy content?

The course is anchored to the PSPF Policy Advisory 001-2025 (October 2025), the Defence Policy Settings for Responsible Use of AI (March 2026), and the ISM December 2025 release. All materials carry a “reviewed on” date, and the course is updated quarterly as new policy releases, ISM controls and approved providers change.

Can this be delivered as a live workshop?

Absolutely. The four-hour structure is designed for instructor-led delivery with built-in exercises, case studies and group discussion. Contact us to arrange a workshop for your team or organisation.

Is the course relevant for Defence industry SMEs?

Very much so. Module 8 specifically addresses DISP-member contractors and includes a practical workshop where participants draft a one-page AI usage policy aligned to ISM-2074. The course covers obligations at every level — from Entry through to Level 3 DISP membership.

What practical takeaways will I have?

You’ll leave with three tangible artefacts: a tool-decision flowchart (“Can I use this AI tool for this task?”), a five-point daily checklist for safe AI use, and a draft AI usage policy for your organisation. Plus a library of defence-ready prompt templates.

How does this compare to the Mastering AI Tools course?

It opens with a short AI-basics section — how AI works, prompt engineering, and the confidentiality boundary — then goes deep into material unique to this course: the Australian defence policy stack, classification boundaries, approved providers, shadow AI and real case studies, vendor evaluation, adversarial risks, and the DISP/industry context. Think of it as AI skills built specifically for the defence and national-security context.

Ready to Start?

Equip yourself and your team with the AI skills and policy knowledge needed to work safely and productively in the defence environment.

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