A story so extraordinary…
January 30, 2018 5:32 PM Subscribe
The Cabinet Files - In a second-hand shop in Canberra there were two heavy filing cabinets to which no-one could find the keys. They were purchased for small change and sat unopened for some months. When they were opened by a nifty driller they were found to contain a trove of documents, many of them classified.
I know that Metafilter has become more establishment-friendly and leaker-averse over the past couple of years - for the obvious reasons - but I still appreciate the importance of providing the powerful with a nagging fear that their desire to... let's see... cut off all income support for anyone under 30 or remove the right to remain silent might be exposed.
posted by clawsoon at 6:05 PM on January 30, 2018 [6 favorites]
posted by clawsoon at 6:05 PM on January 30, 2018 [6 favorites]
Its ordering is rather strange. I wonder if its odd choice of stories are to signal that they've got other more damaging papers from the same time that they don't want to release quite yet?
But that's an oh-shit level of error. Losing code-worded files is not something any government would want to have happen
posted by scruss at 6:05 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]
But that's an oh-shit level of error. Losing code-worded files is not something any government would want to have happen
posted by scruss at 6:05 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]
hello i am a privacy and data governance specialist and i cannot breathe i am laughing so much
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:09 PM on January 30, 2018 [32 favorites]
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:09 PM on January 30, 2018 [32 favorites]
who thinks physical filing cabinets are adequate security in this day and age?
who sells locked filing cabinets?
who *buys* locked filing cabinets?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:11 PM on January 30, 2018 [8 favorites]
who sells locked filing cabinets?
who *buys* locked filing cabinets?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:11 PM on January 30, 2018 [8 favorites]
Glad I'm not alone, scruss.
I get the lead section, telling you what the cabinet files are. But then they follow with two sections that are not about the cabinet files. I think the section after that *is* part of the cabinet files, but they don't say so explicitly. The web design is so bad that the files were probably more accessible when they were locked in the cabinet.
posted by quillbreaker at 6:15 PM on January 30, 2018 [9 favorites]
I get the lead section, telling you what the cabinet files are. But then they follow with two sections that are not about the cabinet files. I think the section after that *is* part of the cabinet files, but they don't say so explicitly. The web design is so bad that the files were probably more accessible when they were locked in the cabinet.
posted by quillbreaker at 6:15 PM on January 30, 2018 [9 favorites]
Losing code-worded files is not something any government would want to have happen
They're not really 'code worded' documents. They're Cabinet-in-Confidence documents - they are deliberative papers meant to support policy and legislative proposals. They're meant to be confidential to enable 'open and frank discussion' in the Cabinet room, ie, so the public can't see the utterly heinous and stupid bullshit the Government comes up with before they arrive at the watered down bullshit they present to the public.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:18 PM on January 30, 2018 [12 favorites]
They're not really 'code worded' documents. They're Cabinet-in-Confidence documents - they are deliberative papers meant to support policy and legislative proposals. They're meant to be confidential to enable 'open and frank discussion' in the Cabinet room, ie, so the public can't see the utterly heinous and stupid bullshit the Government comes up with before they arrive at the watered down bullshit they present to the public.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:18 PM on January 30, 2018 [12 favorites]
But then they follow with two sections that are not about the cabinet files.
No, they are. The 'cabinet files' include documents that (1) discuss the fact that the AFP lost a bunch of files, and (2) discuss the files left behind in Penny Wong's office following the ALP's most recent electoral defeat.
The ABC is just saying that those lost/left behind files themselves were not in the cabinet.
scruss, I now see what you were referring to about the code worded docs
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:21 PM on January 30, 2018
No, they are. The 'cabinet files' include documents that (1) discuss the fact that the AFP lost a bunch of files, and (2) discuss the files left behind in Penny Wong's office following the ALP's most recent electoral defeat.
The ABC is just saying that those lost/left behind files themselves were not in the cabinet.
scruss, I now see what you were referring to about the code worded docs
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:21 PM on January 30, 2018
But then they follow with two sections that are not about the cabinet files.
Section 1: The Australian Federal Police (AFP) lost nearly 400 national security files in five years, according to a secret government stocktake contained in The Cabinet Files.
Section 2: The sensitive documents found in Senator Wong's office should have been destroyed, according to a document in The Cabinet Files.
posted by unliteral at 6:26 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]
Section 1: The Australian Federal Police (AFP) lost nearly 400 national security files in five years, according to a secret government stocktake contained in The Cabinet Files.
Section 2: The sensitive documents found in Senator Wong's office should have been destroyed, according to a document in The Cabinet Files.
posted by unliteral at 6:26 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]
His thoughts were red thoughts: "who *buys* locked filing cabinets?"
For a couple bucks? I would.
posted by Mitheral at 6:27 PM on January 30, 2018 [5 favorites]
For a couple bucks? I would.
posted by Mitheral at 6:27 PM on January 30, 2018 [5 favorites]
Oh. I misread it. I read it as trying to distinguish from other leaks.
posted by quillbreaker at 6:40 PM on January 30, 2018
posted by quillbreaker at 6:40 PM on January 30, 2018
who thinks physical filing cabinets are adequate security in this day and age?
A whole lot of people who are responsible for very sensitive stuff.
I mean, the filing cabinets in question worked fine until someone physically gave them away with their contents. That's a deeper process problem right there.
And they're a hell of a lot better than a modern computer, that's for sure. At least we understand the vulnerabilities of filing cabinets. I'm unconvinced—and my remaining confidence dwindles by the day—that we can say the same about a nontrivial computer system. (Unless of course we just put it in a very big, very heavy, filing cabinet, and agree never to take it out.)
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:18 PM on January 30, 2018 [13 favorites]
A whole lot of people who are responsible for very sensitive stuff.
I mean, the filing cabinets in question worked fine until someone physically gave them away with their contents. That's a deeper process problem right there.
And they're a hell of a lot better than a modern computer, that's for sure. At least we understand the vulnerabilities of filing cabinets. I'm unconvinced—and my remaining confidence dwindles by the day—that we can say the same about a nontrivial computer system. (Unless of course we just put it in a very big, very heavy, filing cabinet, and agree never to take it out.)
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:18 PM on January 30, 2018 [13 favorites]
who *buys* locked filing cabinets?
I have a filing cabinet that has a lock, but I don't have a key for it. I am trying to work out whether it is a better idea to get a new lockable filing cabinet or get the lock replaced. But the most important thing I am ever going to put in it is my work tablet, which, worst case, is replaceable for less than $2000 and does not have any classified information on it.
posted by Athanassiel at 8:22 PM on January 30, 2018
I have a filing cabinet that has a lock, but I don't have a key for it. I am trying to work out whether it is a better idea to get a new lockable filing cabinet or get the lock replaced. But the most important thing I am ever going to put in it is my work tablet, which, worst case, is replaceable for less than $2000 and does not have any classified information on it.
posted by Athanassiel at 8:22 PM on January 30, 2018
I mean, the filing cabinets in question worked fine until someone physically gave them away with their contents. That's a deeper process problem right there.
Yeah, that was a a somewhat foolish kneejerk reaction on my part. Additionally, after having some chats with some colleagues, it appears that the onerous requirements imposed by the ASD Information Security Manual for electronic storage of secret and top secret documents are so expensive that it's driving many agencies to physical storage to avoid the systems upgrades costs that they don't want to budget for.
This is the same reason my old agency is still using secure fax to transmit these kinds of documents - they can't afford the email security upgrades.
Still, to sell a full, locked cabinet... that's some muppetry of the highest order.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:12 PM on January 30, 2018 [3 favorites]
Yeah, that was a a somewhat foolish kneejerk reaction on my part. Additionally, after having some chats with some colleagues, it appears that the onerous requirements imposed by the ASD Information Security Manual for electronic storage of secret and top secret documents are so expensive that it's driving many agencies to physical storage to avoid the systems upgrades costs that they don't want to budget for.
This is the same reason my old agency is still using secure fax to transmit these kinds of documents - they can't afford the email security upgrades.
Still, to sell a full, locked cabinet... that's some muppetry of the highest order.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:12 PM on January 30, 2018 [3 favorites]
Did they come with the departmental leopard, too?
posted by coriolisdave at 9:56 PM on January 30, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by coriolisdave at 9:56 PM on January 30, 2018 [4 favorites]
Someone tell @SegaCDgames, aka OEVNASVERAMV (ROT13'd for those who don't want the magic ruined), about the nonexistent Sega CD game Nifty Driller, about a handyman who stumbles upon secret government files and must investigate a conspiracy while doing his day job and avoiding getting himself assassinated.
posted by BiggerJ at 10:07 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by BiggerJ at 10:07 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]
So I’ve been thinking about the range of documents in this story. It’s quite broad. NatSec stuff, that’s maybe Dutton’s new super portfolio, Department of Owellian Wet Dreams and Racism or whatever, or possibly Defence. The visas and ASIO stuff, that’s for sure Dutton’s portfolio. Civil liberties stuff like 18C - that’s the Attorney General’s portfolio. Nbn - that’s Department of Communications.
The only department that immediately comes to mind that would be likely to have this range of Cabinet-in-confidence documents in that cabinet, is... the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 12:56 AM on January 31, 2018 [8 favorites]
The only department that immediately comes to mind that would be likely to have this range of Cabinet-in-confidence documents in that cabinet, is... the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 12:56 AM on January 31, 2018 [8 favorites]
I would absolutely buy locked filing cabinets. What mystery and adventure!
posted by winna at 4:33 AM on January 31, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by winna at 4:33 AM on January 31, 2018 [4 favorites]
who *buys* locked filing cabinets?
1) Someone who has a lockpicking set.
1a) has confidence in their skills with said set.
2) A set of power tools in case #1 doesn't work and feels the need for a filing cabinet.
If #1 is successful:
3) The hope a set of keys is inside, access to the InterNet to order a re-key kit, or the hobby of hand-filing brass/machining brass to re-key.
The "value" is scrap metal at $100-$300 a ton. Anything about that is gravy as a seller.
posted by rough ashlar at 4:57 AM on January 31, 2018 [3 favorites]
1) Someone who has a lockpicking set.
1a) has confidence in their skills with said set.
2) A set of power tools in case #1 doesn't work and feels the need for a filing cabinet.
If #1 is successful:
3) The hope a set of keys is inside, access to the InterNet to order a re-key kit, or the hobby of hand-filing brass/machining brass to re-key.
The "value" is scrap metal at $100-$300 a ton. Anything about that is gravy as a seller.
posted by rough ashlar at 4:57 AM on January 31, 2018 [3 favorites]
who thinks physical filing cabinets are adequate security in this day and age?
A whole lot of people who are responsible for very sensitive stuff.
Anyone who thinks the physical place for the cabinet is secure. It would seem the sheet metal box was undisturbed until removed from where it was to the point where power tools defeated the lock.
Heck, some people think a box connected to a network is secure - as long as that network is not connected to the Internet.
Old security designations for Windows NT, Target and the design for the HVAC, the report about the switch in a nuke plant with the bridge between the Internet and not-Internet.
There are other examples I'm sure.
posted by rough ashlar at 5:03 AM on January 31, 2018 [1 favorite]
A whole lot of people who are responsible for very sensitive stuff.
Anyone who thinks the physical place for the cabinet is secure. It would seem the sheet metal box was undisturbed until removed from where it was to the point where power tools defeated the lock.
Heck, some people think a box connected to a network is secure - as long as that network is not connected to the Internet.
Old security designations for Windows NT, Target and the design for the HVAC, the report about the switch in a nuke plant with the bridge between the Internet and not-Internet.
There are other examples I'm sure.
posted by rough ashlar at 5:03 AM on January 31, 2018 [1 favorite]
Happens more often than one might think. I know of a find in a bookshop in a small town in the UK of a set of files from a well-known foreign spookery, fortuitously by a chap who know how and why to ensure their return.
Once paper files are mis-indexed, or if they escape a cabinet being emptied, or a cabinet that should be emptied is marked as empty when it hasn't been, or if the keys are lost and the cabinet loses its identity in an office reshuffle (happened to me), the chances of finding them again or knowing how important they are become very slim. It could be many years before their loss is noted in an audit or during a decommission of an office, and if they're not going to be found then the temptation to quietly write them off instead of firing up an investigation becomes strong indeed.
Often, time is very limited when an office closes: there are hard deadlines for getting out (sometimes very hard) and limited resources for dealing with loose ends, especially physical ones. It's not always as spectacular as destroying the embassy records as the mob is breaking through the gates, but it is often chaotic and badly planned.
So, I doubt very much that the bookshop discovery I know about and the case in the FPP are the only two such in the history of confidential documents.
posted by Devonian at 9:52 AM on January 31, 2018 [2 favorites]
Once paper files are mis-indexed, or if they escape a cabinet being emptied, or a cabinet that should be emptied is marked as empty when it hasn't been, or if the keys are lost and the cabinet loses its identity in an office reshuffle (happened to me), the chances of finding them again or knowing how important they are become very slim. It could be many years before their loss is noted in an audit or during a decommission of an office, and if they're not going to be found then the temptation to quietly write them off instead of firing up an investigation becomes strong indeed.
Often, time is very limited when an office closes: there are hard deadlines for getting out (sometimes very hard) and limited resources for dealing with loose ends, especially physical ones. It's not always as spectacular as destroying the embassy records as the mob is breaking through the gates, but it is often chaotic and badly planned.
So, I doubt very much that the bookshop discovery I know about and the case in the FPP are the only two such in the history of confidential documents.
posted by Devonian at 9:52 AM on January 31, 2018 [2 favorites]
I hope that there's some etymology connecting Cabinet and cabinet in a ways that really ties this story together.
posted by clawsoon at 11:14 AM on January 31, 2018
posted by clawsoon at 11:14 AM on January 31, 2018
"Cabinet" in English originally referred to a strongbox for storing valuables. It's cousin to the French term cabinet - a small room, usually off the library or bedroom, for displaying & appreciating the most personal & valuable of items (e.g. Louis XIV had one that was lined with mirrors 😍). When that usage travelled to England, it came to inherit both meanings i.e. a strongroom, and later a (usually locked) piece of furniture for valuables.
The political term "Cabinet" comes from the French, as a small secure room off the main room used for the most private discussion (versus the Privy (private) Council which was less private). It started off as a derogatory term, sort of like 'kitchen cabinet' for a group of unelected/unsupervised advisors. Like many perversions of democracy today, it was fairly quickly normalised and modified until it just became an accepted part of government…
posted by Pinback at 4:45 PM on January 31, 2018 [3 favorites]
The political term "Cabinet" comes from the French, as a small secure room off the main room used for the most private discussion (versus the Privy (private) Council which was less private). It started off as a derogatory term, sort of like 'kitchen cabinet' for a group of unelected/unsupervised advisors. Like many perversions of democracy today, it was fairly quickly normalised and modified until it just became an accepted part of government…
posted by Pinback at 4:45 PM on January 31, 2018 [3 favorites]
who thinks physical filing cabinets are adequate security in this day and age?
A whole lot of people who are responsible for very sensitive stuff.
Anyone who thinks the physical place for the cabinet is secure.
Admittedly, I was being glib to the point of obtuseness. But locking sensitive documents in a cabinet, forgetting that they're there, and losing the key isn't secure at all, as this incident shows.
If you don't know what you have and where it is, it's not secure.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 7:36 PM on January 31, 2018 [1 favorite]
A whole lot of people who are responsible for very sensitive stuff.
Anyone who thinks the physical place for the cabinet is secure.
Admittedly, I was being glib to the point of obtuseness. But locking sensitive documents in a cabinet, forgetting that they're there, and losing the key isn't secure at all, as this incident shows.
If you don't know what you have and where it is, it's not secure.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 7:36 PM on January 31, 2018 [1 favorite]
"The legislation is currently being considered by parliament's intelligence and security committee."
I'm sure the Cabinet-in-confidence brief about the Cabinet cabinet will be fascinating reading.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:25 PM on January 31, 2018
I'm sure the Cabinet-in-confidence brief about the Cabinet cabinet will be fascinating reading.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 8:25 PM on January 31, 2018
ASIO (The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation) has taken the documents away. Safe now.
[EDIT: definition of ASIO]
posted by unliteral at 2:44 AM on February 1, 2018
[EDIT: definition of ASIO]
posted by unliteral at 2:44 AM on February 1, 2018
The only department that immediately comes to mind that would be likely to have this range of Cabinet-in-confidence documents in that cabinet, is... the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.
I was right!
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 1:42 PM on February 3, 2018 [3 favorites]
« Older Tailoring In Metal | Tabasco, the burlesque opera from 1894... Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by quillbreaker at 6:01 PM on January 30, 2018 [1 favorite]