back to article Oz parliamentary network breached

In a security breach that presumably now has Chinese spies trawling through the kind of letters MPs do their best to deflect or ignore, the Australian Parliament House network has been invaded. The network is not rated as suitable for “sensitive” communications. According to News Limited, Australian government officials were …

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  1. Big-nosed Pengie
    FAIL

    The title is required, and must contain letters and/or digits.

    WTF?

    The Americans had to alert the Oz gubmint to the breach?

    If so, I look forward to scenes of heads rolling down the Parliament House lawns.

    Nice of them to tell us, though.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Joke

      I know how it happened

      [US] She stole my stuff! I want it back!

      [Moderator] Who did? What did she steal

      [US] China, she stole my stuff!

      [Moderator] What stuff?

      [US] My stuff, my netowork!

      [China] But I found it! It was just laying around!

      [Moderator] Can I have a look at what you have.

      China slowly, reluctantly, shows what it has stashed behind her back.

      [US] See she stoles it, give it back...

      [Moderator] Hang on this isn't yours.

      Scene shifts to a little kid playing with himself [Australia], god what an embrassment.

  2. LaeMing

    Oh Noes

    They will steal all the great words of our leaders.

    Like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJE4qDGx6wM

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Joke

      Indeed

      May as well stick it all up on Wikileaks, then there will be no incentive to crack the networks.

  3. XMAN

    Coincidence ?

    Assange goes on TV and accuses the PM and some of her helpers of passing information to the USA. She denies it and he says he'll prove it. Then a couple of weeks later, this happens. Coincidence?

    1. LaeMing
      Happy

      I imagine the Australian parliament's network was being read long before.

      Even the Ruskies had a multi-gigahertz 'air vent' on their embassy roof decades ago.

      And as for that huge 4-support spy-antenna slap-bang over the middle of the parliament-house roof!

  4. Tom 38
    Go

    Whenever I read a story on Aussie politicos

    I'm always reminded of the Fourecksian politicians in Pratchett's pseudo Australian alternative described in "The Last Continent". As soon as they are elected, they are thrown in prison - "What dya mean, what for?"

  5. skevmeister
    FAIL

    Oz IT Security Team Required

    Well Australia does have an immigration policy that request you have large sums of cash and a skill set that is missing.

    Well there seems to be a large amount of chinese people that could fill the hole in Australian security for them. Do you think that this would count.

    And just as a quick thought, just becuase they tell people it 'NOT Suitable For Sensative' these are the same people that would leave post it notes for a secure system.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    security not so simple

    Security in government and military circles is not so simple. There are levels of security, and this sounds like a hack regular run on the mill email accounts. Despite popular belief most pollies know that email accounts get hacked, and its very unlikely any national secrets were compromised here. More likely just when they are going out for lunch, or getting a hair cut. True that can be something, but it needs to be kept in context.

  7. TeeCee Gold badge
    Coat

    Just maybe.....

    The Chinese are thinking of implementing Democracy and are having a long, hard look at the really serious cockups this can cause to ensure a smooth transition?

    If that's true:

    We'll be next, then the US and they'll ignore the EU as it's exactly like what they've got now, but doesn't work as well.

  8. Stumpy
    Joke

    Of course...

    If the Great Barrier Firewall were installed this problem would never have occurred would it?

  9. mhenriday
    Big Brother

    Given that China is l'ennemi du jour,

    it's hardly surprising that that country is being blamed for eavesdropping on Aussie parliamentarians. But given that the (dis?)information comes from the US, it does seem strange that nobody has mentioned Echelon (https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Echelon_%28signals_intelligence%29), which listens to us all. But then again, the Aussie government is an active participant in this particular case of eavesdropping....

    Henri

  10. PaulW
    Thumb Up

    Indeed

    So... as I read this article... While the US was inside the Oz network, snooping around, they noticed that someone else was in there snooping around too. And being the ever so helpful people they are they pointed out to the Aussies that the other lot were in there? Did I miss something?

  11. Tom 38
    Headmaster

    @PaulW

    No, they spotted the files being distributed on Tor, by running their own Tor exit nodes, and informed the Aussies.

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