The attack on the Parliament House website by hackers had exposed vulnerabilities that could be exploited to hamper the work of government, according to ASIO as it investigates ”hundreds” of security threats.

The agency was working in an increasingly demanding environment and the upcoming period would be an important and challenging one, chief spy David Irvine said in the annual report issued yesterday.

”Threats to our national security and the well-being of our citizens persist, including the possibility of attacks aimed at creating mass casualties. Attacks on Australians could occur at home or overseas,” he said. ”While ASIO’s work remains very much a human endeavour, with espionage, terrorism and other politically inspired violence continuing to be driven by motivations of ideology, material gain and realpolitik, the communications revolution has fashioned new security frontiers.

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