| name | arckit-au-e8-posture |
| description | [COMMUNITY] Generate an ASD Essential Eight maturity posture assessment for Australian Government projects against all eight mitigation strategies at ML0–ML3. |
⚠️ Community-contributed command — not part of the officially-maintained ArcKit baseline. Output should be reviewed by a qualified CISO or security assessor before reliance. Citations to ASD Essential Eight guidance may lag the current text — verify against the source.
You are an enterprise architect generating an ASD Essential Eight maturity posture assessment for an Australian Government or regulated-sector technology project.
User Input
$ARGUMENTS
Context
The Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) Essential Eight is the baseline cyber-security mitigation framework for Australian Government entities. It defines eight mitigation strategies, each assessed at four maturity levels (ML0–ML3). Essential Eight ML2 is the minimum standard for DISP (Defence Industry Security Program) members and is increasingly expected for government procurement.
Authoritative anchor: ASD Essential Eight Maturity Model — https://www.cyber.gov.au/resources-business-and-government/essential-cyber-security/essential-eight/essential-eight-maturity-model
Key Australian Security References:
Process
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Read prerequisites:
projects/000-global/ARC-000-PRIN-*.md (architecture principles, if present)- The project's REQ artefact — extract NFR-SEC requirements, data classification, compliance obligations
- The project's RISK artefact — extract existing security risks and mitigations
- The project's TRAC artefact if available — security requirement to control and risk mappings
- The project's maturity-model artefact if available — cyber capability uplift baseline
.arckit/templates/_partials/RENDERING.md
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Read the template:
- First, check
.arckit/templates-custom/au-e8-posture-template.md (user override)
- Then,
.arckit/templates/au-e8-posture-template.md
- Fallback,
.arckit/templates/au-e8-posture-template.md
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Use scripts/bash/create-project.sh --json --name "<project-name>" if the project does not yet exist; otherwise locate it.
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Use node scripts/generate-document-id.mjs <PROJECT_ID> AUE8 --filename for the artefact filename.
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Resolve the <!-- DOC-CONTROL-HEADER --> marker per RENDERING.md before writing the artefact. RENDERING.md hard-routes the AU regime to _partials/document-control-au.md, which already carries the PSPF classification ladder — no per-command classification override is needed.
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Generate the following sections:
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System Context — system name, classification level (UNOFFICIAL / OFFICIAL / OFFICIAL:Sensitive / PROTECTED / SECRET), deployment model (cloud / on-premise / hybrid), IRAP assessment status, data sovereignty position.
-
Essential Eight Maturity Assessment — one assessment block per mitigation strategy. For each of the eight strategies:
- Application Control — only approved applications execute on systems
- Patch Applications — security patches for applications applied within timeframes
- Configure Microsoft Office Macro Settings — macros blocked or restricted per policy
- User Application Hardening — web browsers, email clients, Office configured to block untrusted content
Important Notes
- ML0 means the strategy is not implemented — it does not mean "assessed and found satisfactory at a low level." Explicitly state this distinction.
- Each maturity level has specific sub-controls defined by ASD. Do not assess at ML2 if ML1 sub-controls are not fully met — maturity levels are cumulative.
- For OFFICIAL:Sensitive and above, cross-reference the ISM for additional mandatory controls beyond the Essential Eight.
- The Essential Eight is a mitigation framework, not a comprehensive security standard. Recommend
/skill:arckit-au-ism-controls for the full ISM control applicability statement.
- For sector-specific projects, record any additional sector cyber maturity framework in the relevant overlay or custom command rather than expanding the E8 baseline here.
- Use embedded ArcKit artefacts as evidence: risk for treatment ownership, traceability for requirement-to-control lineage, graph-report for AU coverage, and maturity-model for cyber uplift planning.
Suggested Next Steps
After completing this command, consider running:
/skill:arckit-au-ism-controls -- E8 posture feeds the ISM control applicability statement — target ML drives which ISM controls are mandatory./skill:arckit-risk -- E8 gaps surface as security risks for the project risk register./skill:arckit-traceability -- E8 strategy gaps and remediation actions should trace to requirements, risks, ISM controls, and DISP claims./skill:arckit-maturity-model -- E8 maturity evidence can seed broader cyber capability maturity uplift planning./skill:arckit-graph-report -- Graph reporting should show AUE8 coverage and HIGH-severity AU compliance readiness.
