The South African Government and security agencies have left secrets exposed at every level and foreign spies have access to all areas of government, according to the intelligence documents obtained by Al Jazeera’s Investigative Unit.

A secret security assessment by South African intelligence says foreign espionage is booming, with more than 140 foreign spies estimated to be operating in South Africa—and that the South African state is doing a poor job of protecting itself. They are thought to have gained access to government departments, ministries and ‘even the presidency’ and are suspected of breaking into nuclear power plants, stealing military blueprints and hacking computers.

The report slams poor security awareness among civil servants, who regularly failing to observe the most basic procedures, leaving classified information unlocked and failing to adequately vet new recruits. In some cases South African citizens, diplomats and civil servants are helping foreign spies “by unwittingly providing them with classified information or by allowing them access to restricted areas.”