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Northforge / About
Who we are

Decades in classified.
Built for sovereign
digital Australia.

Northforge was founded by practitioners who have spent careers delivering secure digital environments across Defence and national security — from SECRET on-premises infrastructure to modern sovereign cloud platforms.

Mission & purpose
why we exist

We've worked in environments most vendors will never see — SECRET networks, air-gapped infrastructure, mission-critical classified systems operating under the most demanding security requirements in Australia.

That experience is the foundation of Northforge. We saw the same failure mode repeat across Defence programmes: architecture designed without accreditation in mind, cloud environments configured without the security discipline that classified work demands, and programmes stalling at the intersection of policy, technology and governance.

Northforge was built to fix that. We bring the security rigour of classified environments to every sovereign cloud and collaboration platform we deliver — because that's the standard Defence programmes deserve.

SECRET+
Classification levels our team has delivered at
~50%
Typical reduction in time-to-accreditation
100%
Australian owned and operated
Founding story
how we got here
Where our experience comes from
Northforge's team has delivered SECRET-level on-premises Defence environments — air-gapped networks, classified infrastructure, hardened systems operating at the harder end of Australian Government security requirements. This isn't advisory experience. It's hands-on, operational, mission-critical delivery.
The problem we kept seeing
Across Defence cloud and digital programmes, the same failure mode appeared: architecture designed without accreditation in mind, platforms configured without genuine security depth, and IRAP assessors receiving incomplete or non-conformant packages. Programmes spending 12–18 months before reaching assessment — then another 6–12 in remediation.
Why Northforge was founded
Northforge was established to apply the security discipline of classified environments to modern sovereign cloud delivery. Accreditation should be a design input, not a project milestone. The security rigour we developed at SECRET should be the baseline for every PROTECTED environment we build.
Where we are today
Northforge operates as a sovereign Australian firm — no offshore delivery, no foreign ownership, no subcontracting of core capability. Our team holds the clearances, the framework knowledge and the platform expertise to deliver end-to-end, from first engagement through to accredited operations.
Australian sovereign focus
why it matters
Cleared personnel
Our team holds the security clearances required to work on classified programmes — including at SECRET level. We understand the obligations and operate within them from day one of every engagement.
Australian owned
100% Australian owned and operated. No foreign parent company, no offshore delivery centres, no external ownership obligations that could compromise sovereign work or create FOCI risk.
Framework fluency
Deep, current knowledge of ISM, IRAP, PSPF, DSPF and Essential 8 — not as reference documents, but as working constraints we design within on every engagement, at every classification level.
🇦🇺
Sovereign by design, not by declaration. Northforge holds no foreign ownership, conducts no offshore delivery and maintains no subcontracting arrangements for core security capability. When you engage Northforge, the team that scopes the work is the team that delivers it — in Australia, under Australian law, with the clearances the work demands.
Partner ecosystem
technology & delivery partners
Microsoft
Microsoft
Deep specialisation across the full Microsoft security and productivity stack — Azure, M365, Entra ID, Intune, Defender, Purview, Sentinel and Copilot for M365. Delivery aligned to Microsoft's sovereign cloud roadmap for Australian Government.
Sovereign cloud
Australian sovereign cloud
Partnerships with sovereign-capable cloud hosting providers meeting Australian data residency and classification requirements. Northforge designs and delivers on platforms that satisfy PROTECTED and above hosting obligations.
IRAP
IRAP assessors
Established working relationships with ASD-endorsed IRAP assessors. Northforge prepares artefact packages that assessors can work with directly — reducing assessment friction and minimising back-and-forth cycles.
Defence primes
Defence prime contractors
Northforge operates as a specialist sovereign digital capability subcontractor within Defence prime consortia — providing the classified-environment depth, secure platform expertise and accreditation capability that complements prime programme delivery. We are happy to partner with primes.
How we operate
our principles
Depth over breadth
We are specialists, not generalists. Our value is deep expertise in secure Defence digital environments — not a broad advisory practice.
Honest about complexity
Secure Defence programmes are hard. We give clients an accurate view of what's involved — including the things most vendors won't say out loud.
Accountable to outcomes
We measure success by accreditation achieved, platforms operational and capability delivered — not hours billed or documents produced.
Sovereign by default
Every design decision is made with Australian data sovereignty and security obligations in mind — as a constraint, not an afterthought.

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