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| Australia jet and navy data stolen in 'extensive' hack | Australia jet and navy data stolen in 'extensive' hack |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Sensitive information about Australia's defence programmes has been stolen in an "extensive" cyber hack. | Sensitive information about Australia's defence programmes has been stolen in an "extensive" cyber hack. |
| About 30GB of data was compromised in the hack on a government contractor, including details about new fighter planes and navy vessels. | About 30GB of data was compromised in the hack on a government contractor, including details about new fighter planes and navy vessels. |
| The data was commercially sensitive but not classified, the government said. It did not know if a state was involved. | The data was commercially sensitive but not classified, the government said. It did not know if a state was involved. |
| Australian cyber security officials dubbed the mystery hacker "Alf", after a character on TV soap Home and Away. | Australian cyber security officials dubbed the mystery hacker "Alf", after a character on TV soap Home and Away. |
| The breach began in July last year, but the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) was not alerted until November. The hacker's identity is not known. | The breach began in July last year, but the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) was not alerted until November. The hacker's identity is not known. |
| "It could be one of a number of different actors," Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne told the Australian Broadcasting Corp on Thursday. | "It could be one of a number of different actors," Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne told the Australian Broadcasting Corp on Thursday. |
| "It could be a state actor, [or] a non-state actor. It could be someone who was working for another company." | |
| Mr Pyne said he had been assured the theft was not a risk to national security. | Mr Pyne said he had been assured the theft was not a risk to national security. |
| Weaknesses exploited | Weaknesses exploited |
| The hack was described as "extensive and extreme" by ASD incident response manager Mitchell Clarke. | The hack was described as "extensive and extreme" by ASD incident response manager Mitchell Clarke. |
| It included information about Australia's new A$17bn (£10bn; $13bn) F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme, C130 transport plane and P-8 Poseidon surveillance aircraft, as well as "a few" naval vessels, he said. | It included information about Australia's new A$17bn (£10bn; $13bn) F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme, C130 transport plane and P-8 Poseidon surveillance aircraft, as well as "a few" naval vessels, he said. |
| Mr Clarke told a Sydney security conference that the hacker had exploited a weakness in software being used by the government contractor. The software had not been updated for 12 months. | Mr Clarke told a Sydney security conference that the hacker had exploited a weakness in software being used by the government contractor. The software had not been updated for 12 months. |
| The aerospace engineering firm of was also using default passwords, he said. | |
| ASD officials began repairing the system in December. | ASD officials began repairing the system in December. |
| A report by ZDNet said officials referred to the months before ASD intervention as "Alf's mystery happy fun time". | A report by ZDNet said officials referred to the months before ASD intervention as "Alf's mystery happy fun time". |
| "For those visitors overseas to Australia, Alf is Alf Stewart from an horrific Australia soap opera called Home and Away. It's just a thing we do," Mr Clarke told his audience, according to BuzzFeed. | "For those visitors overseas to Australia, Alf is Alf Stewart from an horrific Australia soap opera called Home and Away. It's just a thing we do," Mr Clarke told his audience, according to BuzzFeed. |
| 'Salutary reminder' | |
| The government distanced itself from the Adelaide-based firm, saying it had most likely been employed by another contractor. | |
| "I don't think you can try and sheet blame for a small enterprise having lax cyber security back to the federal government. That is a stretch," Mr Pyne said. | |
| "Fortunately, the data that was taken was commercial data, not military data, but it is still very serious and we will get to the bottom of it." | |
| However, he said "we don't necessarily let the public know" about the identities of hackers, because such investigations often involve confidential information. | |
| The incident was a "salutary reminder" about cyber security, he added. | |
| Last year, Australia announced a surge in defence spending, a move that reflects concern over military expansion in the region. | |
| Military spending would grow by A$29.9bn over 10 years, including plans to buy 72 Joint Strike Fighters, the 2016 Defence White Paper outlined. |