“At this stage,no information has been detected on the internet or the dark web,” Hoenig said.

“To date,no people protected by AVOs or ADVOs have been identified as being at increased risk of harm due to the data breach.”

NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley welcomed the charges,thanking the detectives for the “tireless work investigating this matter”.

Speaking to theHerald in March,Samantha Lee,supervising solicitor at Redfern Legal Centre,said the leak of the documents was a “drastic concern” when it came to the safety of protected persons.

“People certainly are apprehensive to give statements in terms of AVO proceedings and would be absolutely distraught to find out that information may have become public,” she said.

Such documents could include the names and addresses of victims and offenders and,potentially detailed accounts of alleged offending,Lee said.

“There’s so much private personal safety information put onto the court registry. There needs to be absolute certainty to guarantee privacy ... otherwise the trust in that system will quickly erode.”

With Jessica McSweeney

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