Louvre's video surveillance password? 'LOUVRE' - post-heist report reveals security blunder

Following the sensational October 18 heist, French newspaper Libération disclosed the museum's shocking cybersecurity practices, which critics say are "basically one step above 'password'".

Another key piece of software used by the Louvre, published by tech company Thales, simply had the password "THALES".

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It is not clear yet whether these weaknesses contributed to the high-profile robbery last month, which saw $102 million (£76 million) worth of crown jewels stolen from the museum in broad daylight.

The news has shocked the cybersecurity world, with one tech fan joking: "If you ever have impostor syndrome, just remember that the security password for The Louvre was "louvre"."

The weak password set up was revealed after a string of security reviews conducted by the French National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI).

ANSSI was called in to audit the museum's critical IT systems in 2014.

These systems - which control the alarms, access control, and video surveillance - were seen as susceptible to a cyberattack, with the protections of this infrastructure labelled "trivial".

The Louvre was warned that "an attacker who manages to take control of it would be able to facilitate damage or even theft of artworks".

Alongside these outrageously weak passwords, the museum was also running an outdated version of Windows.

In 2017, ANSSI warned that, while the museum 'has thus far been relatively spared, it can no longer ignore the potential threat of an attack whose consequences could prove dramatic".

These flaws provide more evidence that the Louvre robbers were not as professional as initially thought.

During the four-minute heist, the suspects, believed to be a four-man team, used a stolen mechanical lift to enter the Galerie d'Apollon (Gallery of Apollo) via a balcony before cracking open display cases and fleeing with the jewels.

Although they managed to escape without being caught, the thieves dropped the Empress Eugenie's crown, left tools behind, and failed to set fire to the lift.

These failures led Paris' prosecutor Laure Beccuau to describe the gang as petty criminals rather than professional members of an organised crime group.

Three of these suspects have since been arrested, alongside four others who police believe were involved in the heist, with the final robber still at large.

Speaking to Franceinfo radio, Ms Beccuau said: "This is not quite everyday delinquency... but it is a type of delinquency that we do not generally associate with the upper echelons of organised crime."