ACT government reviewing 'spy cams' use after security concerns raised

The Justice and Community Safety Directorate has commenced its audit into the use of closed-circuit television across the ACT government with a report expected to be finalised in April.

Several surveillance camera brands were banned in government buildings across the United States and the United Kingdom in 2022 on national security grounds following fears the data could be accessed by the Chinese government.

A number of federal departments and agencies in Canberra have begun the process of reviewing the cameras installed in their buildings and removing the affected brands, which among them include Hikvision and Dahua.

A Justice and Community Safety spokesperson confirmed none of the affected camera brands had been found within the ACT Legislative Assembly building.

It's understood the review, which started in February, has already uncovered some of the affected cameras in other buildings across the territory.

"Access to the CCTV Network is strictly controlled," the spokesperson said.

The ACT government uses CCTV networks across various public venues and open spaces to monitor public safety and emergency responses.

There are around 100 cameras monitored by the directorate's Security and Emergency Management Division.

The directorate's review had been prompted by a series of reports in February by The Canberra Times, which revealed a number of agencies had begun ripping out the surveillance cameras.

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More than 1000 have been found across federal public service buildings and electorate offices.

The Department of Defence said it was conducting a full audit of all its sites to confirm no devices remained.

The department had identified 41 systems across 17 sites in November and December 2022 following US and UK media reports.

The Defence Department began removing the Chinese-linked surveillance cameras from military bases and buildings as far back as 2018 following security advice.

Deputy secretary Celia Perkins Perkins confirmed about half of the camera systems had already been decommissioned as part of the work undertaken in 2018.

All physical devices had since been removed, she said.

The Australian War Memorial has also said it would remove 11 Hikvision-branded cameras across two of its sites in February following fears the Chinese-owned technology could be used as spyware.

Five of the devices were said to be pulled from the site in February, with the remaining six cameras being replaced by the middle of the year.

War memorial chair Kim Beazley said the move was precautionary, rather than as a result of any new advice or concern.

"Not because we've had any notice of anything in particular untoward but out of an abundance of caution, not fear," Mr Beazley said, adding "useful" intelligence could be acquired from the memorial site.

The Finance, Prime Minister and Cabinet, Attorney-General's and Foreign Affairs and Trade departments are also among those identifying the cameras across their sites.