Sensitive government files were allegedly discovered in the home of a high-profile Chinese socialite and her Australian husband, a former high-ranking intelligence official, during ASIO raids in Canberra.

The raid targeted Sheri Yan and former Australian diplomat Roger Uren, over allegations she was involved in operations for the Chinese Communist Party, a Fairfax Media and Four Corners investigation reported.

The raid in October 2015 came as Ms Yan was arrested by the FBI in New York for bribing a senior United Nations official for which she was jailed last year after pleading guilty to bribery charges.

Asked about the reports and whether China is threatening Australia's sovereignty Defence Minister Marise Payne said she did not believe there was a threat.

'But we are very conscious of the efforts of external actors around the world and we have seen other examples of this in recent times,' she told ABC radio.

The ASIO operation investigated the prospect that Australian targets were at the centre of a Chinese intelligence operation.

It comes as Four Corners investigates the Chinese Communist Party and its efforts to scope out Australian institutions and Australian political figures.

Ms Yan, 58, is believed to have connections to people in Australian politics including former members of the Labor and Liberal Parties.

Yan allegedly also had connections to the Communist Party.

She is the daughter of a Chinese artist and People's Liberation Army member.

Mr Uren was suspected of taking the documents from his former employer the Office of National Assessments before he left in 2001.

No charges were laid against him. </s> Sheri Yan, jailed for bribing UN official, was target of secret ASIO raid in 2015

Agents from the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) found a cache of secret government files when they broke into a Canberra home in October 2015 while searching for evidence that one of the occupants might be a Chinese spy.

The apartment belonged to a woman dubbed the "queen" of the Australia-China social scene, Sheri Yan, and her husband, Roger Uren, a former high-ranking Australian intelligence official and diplomat.

A Four Corners-Fairfax investigation has revealed the secret ASIO raid was targeting Yan over allegations she was a Chinese Communist Party spy.

The highly classified documents contained details of what Western agencies knew about the operations of Chinese intelligence.

Mr Uren is suspected of having taken them from his former employer, the Office of National Assessments, before he left the agency in August 2001.

Removing classified documents is generally an offence but, to date, no charges have been laid.

The raid was timed to coincide with the FBI's arrest of Yan in New York on charges of bribing John Ashe, when he was president of the United Nations General Assembly. She pleaded guilty and was jailed last year.

Yan, 58, has deep connections to Australian political, business and foreign affairs figures, including senior ex-Labor and Liberal politicians.

The daughter of a celebrated Chinese artist and People's Liberation Army member, Yan is also known to have impeccable Communist Party connections.

The ASIO operation raises the prospect that Australian targets, as well as figures inside the United Nations, were the subject of a Chinese intelligence operation.

The revelations are part of a major Four Corners-Fairfax investigation into the Chinese Communist Party's efforts to infiltrate Australian institutions and cultivate political figures.

It comes as the US grapples with Russian interference in its political system.

Mr Uren told Four Corners and Fairfax Media that ASIO was investigating allegations that Yan worked for Chinese intelligence, a charge he described as "pure fantasy".

"It reflects the psychosis of the people making the allegations," he said.

Mr Uren blamed the US for the ASIO raid, saying information about Yan was likely to have come from the FBI.

"It's US prejudice that all Chinese are spies," he said.

Government sources dismissed Mr Uren's comments. The ABC understands that ASIO was acting on its own intelligence.

Mr Ashe was elected to a one-year term as president of the General Assembly beginning in 2013, about the same time Yan is accused of making monthly payments of $20,000 to him under the guise of a non-governmental organisation she headed, known as the Global Sustainability Foundation.

He died in a weightlifting accident while awaiting trial, shortly before Yan was sentenced to prison for bribing him.

Watch 'Power And Influence: How China's Communist Party Is Infiltrating Australia' on Four Corners, ABC TV, Monday 8:30pm. </s> A Fairfax Media-Four Corners investigation has discovered that the classified Australian documents detail activities of Chinese intelligence services. Precisely how they came to be in the apartment remains the subject of a law enforcement investigation. Sheri Yan and husband Roger Uren Credit:Black Tie Magazine Mr Uren is suspected of having removed them from his former employer, the Office of National Assessments, prior to his departure from the agency in August 2001. Mr Uren was the Assistant Secretary responsible for the Asia section of the ONA, the agency which briefs the Prime Minister on sensitive intelligence matters. Mr Uren was once tipped to be Kevin Rudd's choice for ambassador to Beijing. The raid was launched in October 2015 after ASIO gathered information suggesting Ms Yan may be connected to Chinese Communist Party intelligence services. It was timed to coincide with the FBI's arrest of Ms Yan in New York for bribing a senior United Nations official. She was jailed last year for corruption after pleading guilty to bribery charges.

Ms Yan, 58, has deep connections to Australian political, business and foreign affairs figures, including senior ex-Labor and Liberal politicians. The daughter of a celebrated Chinese artist, Ms Yan is also known to have impeccable Communist Party connections. Sheri Yan was sent to jail for bribing the former president of the United Nations General Assembly, John Ashe. Credit:Black Tie Magazine The ASIO operation raises the prospect that Australia has been the target of a Chinese intelligence operation, along with figures inside the United Nations. The revelations are part of a series of investigative reports by Fairfax Media and Four Corners into the Chinese Communist Party's efforts to infiltrate Australian institutions and cultivate links to political figures. It comes as the United States grapples with revelations about the extent of Russian meddling in its political system.

Corrupting the United Nations Ms Yan's US charges related to bribes paid to United Nations General Assembly president John Ashe to carry out certain tasks for wealthy Chinese businessmen. One of Ms Yan's charges involves a $200,000 payment to get Mr Ashe to speak at an international symposium held at a Guangdong resort owned by an Australian-Chinese billionaire. The billionaire has close political connections in Australia of his own but has never been charged with any offence. Ms Yan was jailed last year for 20 months. Questioned about the raid, Mr Uren confirmed that ASIO was investigating allegations that Sheri Yan worked with Chinese intelligence agencies. He described the allegations as "pure fantasy." "It reflects the psychosis of the people making the allegations," he said.

Mr Uren blamed the US for the ASIO raid, saying information about Ms Yan was likely to have come from the FBI. "It's US prejudice that all Chinese are spies," he said. Government sources dismissed the comments of Mr Uren, who after leaving the ONA took up a senior role with the Hong Kong listed Phoenix Television, one of the few privately owned broadcasters to be licensed by the Chinese government. Mr Uren is suspected of removing the classified documents from the ONA when he left the agency in 2001. Removing classified intelligence files from a secure environment is a criminal offence and ASIO has referred the matter to the Australian Federal Police's special operations taskforce, which handles the policing agency's most sensitive work.

Ms Yan and Mr Uren were previously regulars at Australian embassy events in Beijing. Ms Yan was once also paid to act as a lobbyist by the ABC in her native China when the public broadcaster made an ultimately futile effort to secure local broadcasting rights for its overseas television channel Australia Network. She used her high-level connections in Australia and China to act as a go-between. Her office and online business profiles were plastered with photographs such as an encounter with former Labor leader Bob Hawke and billionaire Frank Lowy. "You can trust her," reads a glowing endorsement from Greg Rudd, brother of former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, which is posted on Ms Yan's LinkedIn page. "She's well connected in all jurisdictions and understands what works and what doesn't work. Most important she is a woman of high morals and principle ... and is the queen of entertaining and hosting. Sheri is always worth talking to."

John Ashe was elected to a one-year term as president of the United Nations General Assembly beginning in 2013, about the same time Ms Yan is accused of making monthly payments of $20,000 to him under the guise of a non-governmental organisation she headed, known as the "Global Sustainability Foundation". He died in a weightlifting accident while awaiting trial and shortly after Ms Yan was sentenced to prison for bribing him. Nick McKenzie, Daniel Flitton, Chris Uhlmann, Richard Baker </s> Parliament House in Canberra. Australian spy chiefs suggested that China was the main suspect behind the sophisticated and unprecedented attack DAVID GRAY/REUTERS

The computer networks of Australia’s main political parties were the target of a cyberattack by a foreign power before May’s general election, the country’s prime minister said today.

Scott Morrison told MPs that a “sophisticated state actor” was behind the hack. Senior intelligence sources told the Sydney Morning Herald that it bore the “digital fingerprints” of action by the Chinese state and the level of sophistication was “unprecedented”.

The attack was first uncovered ten days ago on the computer networks of Australia’s national parliament but Mr Morrison said that investigators had since discovered it had a wider scope. Political parties including the governing Liberal and National parties and the opposition Labor Party were also targeted.

“Our cyberexperts believe that a sophisticated state actor is responsible…
Reports emerge of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation's discovery of classified Australian documents, related to Chinese intelligence activity abroad, in the Canberra home of a woman allegedly acting on behalf of the Communist Party of China.