POL30018: Cybercrime and security

Assignment 3: Policy brief

Word/time limit: 2000 (+/- 10%)

Weighting: 40%

Due date: 5pm AEDT Friday 7 February 2025 (Week 12)

Individual/team task: Individual

After you have read this information, head over to the Assignment 3 Q&A discussion board to ask any questions and see what your peers are saying about this assignment.

Assignment details

Components of a policy brief

A policy brief consists of three separate but interlinked components:

A brief (one page) executive summary of research explaining what the offence is and why it is significant.

A detailed analysis of existing government policies that are relevant to the offence, specifically addressing their strengths and weaknesses.

A suite of recommended changes to existing policies, including one to three significant changes that would offer a more comprehensive response than what is currently in place.

Requirements of your policy brief

As with the research essay, the policy brief must be well-researched and supported by relevant scholarly and governmental sources.

The tone of your policy brief should be informative, succinct, critical and persuasive—remember, it’s your job to offer practical, real world solutions to the issue at hand. It is also important not to assume the minister knows anything about the selected cyber crime you have chosen.

Where possible, use real world examples of government policies that have been used and have demonstrated success (or failure) in other jurisdictions.