Suspects billed for having their phones tapped

November 2 2002

www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/11/01/1036027034871.html

A German intelligence-gathering operation went spectacularly wrong after bills for phone tapping services were sent to the people being bugged.

About 50 people received the demands in mobile phone invoices. Many of them established that their phones were being tapped because the bills listed calls made to a number which was a recording device used by the intelligence service to monitor conversations.

German federal police last week sent an urgent warning to all regional police forces, who are checking records to ascertain who received the bills and whether they were aware of the eavesdropping. 20,000 phones in Germany are being tapped at present.

Police said they held the mobile phone operator responsible. Legal action has not been ruled out.


- Telegraph