Defence initially claimed there was only one device
Western Australia Auditor General Report: Information Systems Audit – Local Government 2021-22
Media Report:Explosive revelations of over 400 Chinese spyware devices installed across Australian Defence sites | YouTube
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In questioning officials on Wednesday, Senator Paterson queried how many had been discovered as part of the audit.
Hundreds of Chinese-made security cameras have been found at a number of defence sites across Australia after the department claimed there was only one. However, Defence Minister Richard Marles said he had asked the department to engage in a further audit, ‘just to make sure we’ve not missed any’.
Defence officers revealed they had uncovered 435 spy devices ‘of concern’ during a senate estimates hearing on Wednesday.
These devices were manufactured by Chinese companies Hikvision and Dahua, which are both partly-owned by the Chinese government.
Celia Perkins, the deputy secretary responsible for security and estate, said there had been a significant increase in response to Mr Marle’s “detailed physical audit” order.
She said defence was now working through a process of completely removing the devices from all sites and the department was on track to have that “completed” by June 30.
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