ANZ appoints Maria Milosavljevic as next CISO

ANZ Banking Group has appointed Maria Milosavljevic as its next CISO, replacing Lynwen Connick who is retiring in October after six-and-a-half years as security chief.

ANZ's new CISO Maria Milosavljevic.

Milosavljevic will leave her current position as the Defence’s inuaugural chief data integration officer to take up the CISO role.

Connick was appointed ANZ's CISO in 2017 and "has had a significant impact on the bank," group executive technology and group services Gerard Florian said in a statement.

"[Connick's] cyber security expertise has been a tremendous asset for both ANZ and our customers at a time of great change in the industry, and we wish her continued success in her retirement.”

Milosavljevic, who will join ANZ on August 28, will be responsible for ANZ’s information security strategy, which includes ensuring that it addresses challenges in the cyber security landscape and that it supports ANZ’s digital transformation. 

Florian called Milosavljevic an “innovative leader” with “a breadth of experience across data and security in both government and the private sector.”

“She has a track record of building and running cyber, data and analytics operations and brings to ANZ wide and deep connections with the cyber security community locally and internationally," he said.

“Maria’s experience will be invaluable in continuing to protect both ANZ and our customers.”

Milosavljevic has been Defence’s inaugural chief data integration officer since February last year. She headed a new data division created to uplift Defence’s data maturity.

Prior to that, she worked at Services Australia. She was hired as the agency’s chief data officer in 2019 and then promoted to CISO in 2021.

Milosavljevic was also previously the NSW Department of Customer Service’s CISO; the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC's) CIO and CISO; and the Australian Crime Commission's CISO and later its CIO.

She was also appointed to the NSW’s inaugural artificial intelligence committee in 2021 to help develop the state’s AI assurance framework and advise the NSW government on the appropriate use of AI.