The land down under has been rocked by a espionage scandal, after Australia’s top spy made serious accusations against an unnamed former politician.
Head of security for the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO), Mike Burgess, said that the politician ‘sold out’ Australia to a foreign intelligence service that also remains unnamed for now.
Burgess added that the Australian agency confronted the ‘spy ring’ to let them know their cover had been blown.
ASIO chief said in his annual speech that he had declassified details of the operation, ‘which used professional networking platforms, email and social media to target Australians’.
Reuters reported:
“He did not name the country involved, but said it had also targeted Australia’s defense industry, offering money for reports on the AUKUS partnership with the U.S. and Britain to build nuclear submarines.
He said the foreign agency had ‘successfully cultivated and recruited a former Australian politician’ several years ago. He did not identify the politician, and said the person had not been charged because they were no longer active.