It's one of the most heavily guarded buildings in Australia. Though clad in glass, few ever get to see what happens within the Ben Chifley Building, an imposing structure overlooking Canberra's Lake Burley Griffin and the nation's Parliament. Inside the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, (ASIO), the domestic spy agency Prime Minister Chifley established in 1949, a major transformation is underway.
Director-General Mike Burgess is on a mission to bring ASIO out of the shadows — at least in part.
Flanked by security guards, he leads the ABC to the spy agency's basement — offering first-of-its kind access to the workshops where devices are made in a bid to keep an eye on suspected terrorists and foreign spies.
It's a 250-metre corridor with colourful cabling running overhead. Within some of those cables lies top secret information....MORE
