What do you think of when you think of security?
Do you think of online security and its various, tedious risks? Most of us have experienced phishing scams (who knew there were so many “Nigerian princes” trying to transfer money?) and the recent Sony email breach showed us once again how easily private data can be hacked.
Home security is usually at the forefront of most people’s minds and for good reason; with a burglary occurring in the US every 14 seconds, it’s something most of us will have to deal with at some point. Every now and then, however, a security breach occurs that truly stuns the world. From an outrageous physical breach of property to a devastating online data breach, have a look at three scandalous security breaches that shocked the world.
1. Michael Fagan – The Buckingham Palace Breach
On the morning of July 9th 1982, 33-year-old Michael Fagan scaled the 14 foot perimeter wall encircling Buckingham Palace, shimmied over the barbed wire and revolving spikes and clambered up a drainpipe before entering the Queen’s bedroom.
Even though the alarm did sound, a member of palace staff believed it to be a faulty alert and quickly silenced it. When Fagan disturbed a curtain the Queen woke up; shocked and believing she was under threat, she quickly left to find security.
Astonishingly, this was not the first time Fagan had entered Buckingham Palace. Once again scaling a drainpipe, he’d previously entered the palace through an unlocked window on the roof. Unsure what to do once he gained entry, Fagan enjoyed an impromptu palace tour: he viewed the royal portraits, ate cheddar cheese and crackers, drank a half a bottle of wine and even sat on the throne. After getting bored of his palace adventure, Fagan left without anyone being alerted to his presence.
Fagan was never charged for trespassing because at that time it was a civil as opposed to criminal offence. He was charged with theft—for, of all things, drinking the wine—but the charges were later dropped. The ensuing humiliation that this royal security breach caused prompted the Home Secretary at the time, Willie Whitelaw, to offer his resignation to the Queen. She refused.
2. Thamsanqa Jantjie – Nelson Mandela Funeral Breach
When Nelson Mandela died in 2013, South Africa and much of the world was in a state of mourning. The official memorial service was held on December 10th and over ninety world leaders were present to show their respects. What happened next was classified as a “national embarrassment” for South Africa; while interpreting the various speeches of the ceremony into sign language, it became very apparent that the interpreter, Thamsanqa Jantjie, was a fake.
“He’s a complete fraud. He wasn’t even doing anything, there was not one sign there. Nothing. He was literally flapping his arms around.” This was the expert opinion of Cara Loening, director of Sign Language Education in Cape Town, and Jantjie himself was—surprisingly—in agreement with her.
After divulging that he suffered from schizophrenia and had been due a mental assessment the very same day of the service, Jantjie blamed hallucinations for his “signs”, even admitting that he became violent “a lot” during these episodes. SA Interpreters, the firm which hired Jantjie for the service, “vanished into thin air” in the aftermath of the event.
While no real harm may have come from Jantjie’s performance, the risk he potentially posed was very real. The South African news station eNCA claimed that Jantjie had previously been charged (although not sentenced) for crimes ranging from breaking and entering to rape, kidnapping and attempted murder. When you consider that this man was within feet of U.S. President Barack Obama and many other world leaders, the extent of the breach becomes apparent.
3. The Edward Snowden NSA Data Breach
In June 2013 Edward Snowden was just an inconspicuous young man working as a National Security Association contractor in Oahu, Hawaii. In a matter of days he went from relative obscurity to being considered the world’s most famous whistleblower, spy and eventually fugitive. Snowden is assessed to have stolen around 1.7 million top-secret documents in what is described as the biggest intelligence security breach in recent American history. So what exactly happened?
During his time working in the NSA’s Oahu office, Snowden became aware of government plans which involved the NSA spying on millions of US citizens through phone calls and internet use. This secret government programme was called PRISM and Snowden found it so intrusive and disconcerting that he began compiling a dossier on the NSA’s secret surveillance practices. Fully aware of the gravity of his actions, Snowden told his employers he had to take a leave of absence and fled to Hong Kong, where he began leaking the documents to The Washington Post and The Guardian.
The fallout was intense. Members of Congress accused Snowden of being a “defector” who had committed treason and he is considered by many to be among “America’s Most Wanted”. Public opinion on Snowden is more mixed—53% of Americans think the public have a right to know about surveillance programs, and he is viewed by many across the world as a selfless and brave hero. Snowden is currently protected under asylum in Russia; facing charges of espionage from the US government, it’s unlikely he’ll ever return to his home country.
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Author: Terri Engels
Editor: Alli Sarazen
Photo: thierry eherman/Flickr
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