Security companies with government contracts: how to benchmark federal winners
If you searched security companies with government contracts, you probably want one of three things: a list of who already holds the work, a sense of how big the market is, or a way in for your own firm. Federal contract notices on AusTender answer all three, if you read them the right way.
This guide uses TenderTracker's index of Commonwealth award notices for guarding and security services (UNSPSC class 921215) to show who wins, which agencies buy, and how an SME security firm can benchmark itself. Coverage here is federal only.
The federal security services market in numbers
From current (non-superseded) federal contract notices tagged UNSPSC 921215, published July 2020 to October 2026:
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Contract notices | 276 |
| Distinct suppliers | 117 |
| Total notified value | ~A$648m |
| FY26 notices / value | 66 / ~A$178.5m |
| Value via open tender | ~A$458.7m across 80 notices |
| Value via limited tender | ~A$187.6m across 195 notices |
Two takeaways. First, most notices are limited tenders (195 of 276), but most value goes through open approaches. Second, 117 suppliers sounds like a broad field, until you look at concentration.
Who holds the biggest federal security contracts
| Supplier | Notices | Notified value |
|---|---|---|
| MSS Security Pty Limited | 62 | ~A$191.1m |
| Wilson Security Pty Ltd | 24 | ~A$137.1m |
| AEGIS Defence Services Limited | 2 | ~A$78.2m |
| Control Risks Group Limited | 2 | ~A$56.3m |
| M.A Services Group Pty Ltd | 9 | ~A$24.2m |
| Corroboree Security Pty Ltd | 3 | ~A$18.3m |
| Habitat Security Pty Ltd | 4 | ~A$12.9m |
MSS and Wilson together account for roughly 51% of notified value in this class. Several of the large overseas names (AEGIS, Control Risks) reflect guarding at Australian posts abroad, not domestic sites, so check the buyer before treating them as your competitors.
Which agencies buy security services
| Agency | Notices | Notified value |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australian Aid Program) | 63 | ~A$205.4m |
| Australian Federal Police | 35 | ~A$76.8m |
| Attorney-General's Department | 15 | ~A$13.9m |
| Department of Defence | 42 | ~A$10.2m |
Defence is a useful pattern for SMEs: lots of notices (42) at small average value. That is where regional and specialist firms tend to show up, compared with the large multi-year guarding contracts at DFAT and the AFP.
How to benchmark your firm against federal winners
1. Define your real peer set. Domestic static guarding, event security, and overseas post security are different markets. Filter the winners list down to firms that do what you do, at a comparable size.
2. Read the profiles, not just the totals. Each supplier profile shows the agencies a firm sells into, its contract timing, and whether wins are one-off or repeat. A firm with 62 notices across several agencies is a different competitor from one with a single large award.
3. Watch end dates. Large guarding contracts run for years. When an incumbent's contract approaches expiry, the agency is likely to go back to market. That's your window to prepare, ideally before the approach to market is published.
4. Separate awards from open opportunities. Awards tell you who wins. Open approaches tell you what you can bid on this week. See Awarded tenders Australia for how to read notices, and Tender monitoring Australia for alerts on renewals.
Free vs TenderTracker
| Need | Free / public | TenderTracker |
|---|---|---|
| Official award notices | AusTender | Linked supplier, agency and contract pages |
| Browse security suppliers | Notice by notice | Supplier directory (guest) |
| Peer benchmarks and exports | None | Paid plans |
| Matched open tenders and renewals for your firm | None | Opportunity Radar on Starter |
Related reading
- Australian supplier directory: find who wins federal contracts
- Awarded tenders Australia: reading contract notices for BD
Next step
Find out who holds the work, then get matched to what's coming up.
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