Police mole busted by IT audit

"Sophisticated" information security systems failed to prevent a NSW Police analyst from leaking information on raids to infamous bikie gang, the Comancheros, according to a senior officer.

The Comancheros logo(Credit: Comancheros)

NSW Police special operations deputy commissioner Nick Kaldas said the systems, which included data loss prevention and encryption, had led to the arrest of analyst Terry Gregoriou following an audit by IT security staff.

The investigation also tracked suspicious behaviour by Gregoriou, including inappropriate data access that was flagged by the data security systems.

"His access was limited. It wasn't a lack of technology, it was the human element," Kaldas told ZDNet Australia.

"What did save us was robust audit systems trails and other checks that clearly showed he was accessing materials inappropriately. Nobody pointed him out to us. We had identified him, targeted him and arrested him."

Kaldas said the police IT systems were not flawed and did not require an overhaul.

Gregoriou had low level access, was not a sworn police officer and had passed initial profile checks, Kaldas said.

Police commenced an audit in the wake of a tip-off and tracked Gregoriou's actions via security systems described as "big-brotherish but necessary".

The Sydney Morning Herald alleged this week that the Comanchero bikie gang received more than a dozen police documents relating to eight investigations.

Gregoriou was charged in December with four counts of larceny and three counts of unlawfully disclosing or releasing information as a public officer and appeared in Downing Centre Court on Monday, according to AAP reports.

Kaldas said robust security systems must be married with regular and systematic audits and reviews.

The NSW Police force has more than 20,000 employees, Kaldas said.