Australian state's court recording database hacked

Australia's Victoria state court recordings were accessed by hackers, which disrupted the audio-visual in-court technology network, a top official said on Tuesday.

The development has impacted recordings and transcription services of some court hearings between November 1 and December 21, 2023, as per the statement.

The recordings before November 1 and between the aforementioned November to December period may have been stolen, Court Services Victoria CEO Louise Anderson said.

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

Court Services Victoria did not reveal whether it received any ransomware demands.

Hearings in January would proceed after the affected network was isolated and disabled. Court officials are working closely with the government's cyber security experts.

An Australian government report released in November 2023 showed one attack happening every six minutes, reflecting how state-sponsored cyber groups and hackers have stepped up their assault on Australia's critical infrastructure, businesses and homes.

The cyber intrusion at the court database comes after a hack late last year at one of Australia’s largest port operators DP World Australia. Operations were suspended for three days post the incident.

Last week, car dealership group Eagers Automotive also reported a cyber incident in its IT systems.

(With Reuters Inputs)