Cyber attack breaches Australian court system’s AV network

Hackers have breached the AV network for the court system in the Australian state of Victoria and accessed the recordings database.

Court Services Victoria (CSV) was made aware of the attack on 21 December but it is believed the AV network was first compromised on 1 November.

CSV chief executive Louise Anderson said in a statement that video and audio recordings of some hearings in the supreme, county, magistrates and coroner’s courts were accessed over the seven-week period and may have been stolen.

She added that some hearings before 1 November may also have been affected, with an October recording from the children’s court believed to have been accessed.

“The potential access is confined to recordings stored on the network,” said Anderson. “No other court systems or records, including employee or financial data, were accessed.”

Hearings this month will proceed after the affected network was isolated and disabled. Security across the broader court and tribunal-wide technology system will be strengthened as part of restoration work.

CSV did not reveal whether it received any ransomware demands.