Defence is reviewing its processes for security checks on recruits after a Russian-born Australian army private and her husband who came to the country just 10 years ago were accused of trying to steal military secrets to pass on to their handlers in Moscow.

Former top-ranking security officials called for an urgent review to vetting procedures after a major Federal Police and ASIO foreign interference investigation is said to have disrupted a spy plot that could be taken from a John le Carré novel or the television series The Americans.