Vodafone Reveals Government Wiretaps
The Britain-based multinational telecommunications company confirmed that a small number of governments have direct access to the information coursing through its networks.
The Britain-based multinational telecommunications company confirmed that a small number of governments have direct access to the information coursing through its networks. The disclosure is in addition to the revelations by former contractor Edward Snowden that the British and American governments are spying on telephone and Internet users worldwide.
The BBC reports:
Vodafone said it values customer privacy, but it must comply with laws “designed to protect national security and public safety”.
In most of the 29 countries where Vodafone has major operations, including the UK, law enforcement and intelligence agencies must have a warrant to listen to phone calls or look at text messages, emails or web chats.
The firm said it could not specify the countries that have a direct line into its networks, because those countries have laws prohibiting disclosure of surveillance methods.
BBC analyst Gordon Corera says, “Vodafone’s report is a sign that telecoms companies are joining internet and other tech companies in providing for more transparency in their role sitting between customers and government.”
— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly
WAIT, BEFORE YOU GO…If you're reading this, you probably already know that non-profit, independent journalism is under threat worldwide. Independent news sites are overshadowed by larger heavily funded mainstream media that inundate us with hype and noise that barely scratch the surface. We believe that our readers deserve to know the full story. Truthdig writers bravely dig beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that tells you what’s really happening and who’s rolling up their sleeves to do something about it.
Like you, we believe a well-informed public that doesn’t have blind faith in the status quo can help change the world. Your contribution of as little as $5 monthly or $35 annually will make you a groundbreaking member and lays the foundation of our work.
"Official Secrets," the new film about whistleblower Katherine Gun is largely accurate --- but this story is not over.
The whistleblower says do what Katharine Gun did in 2003. Gun is a former U.K. intelligence analyst who leaked information about the illegality of the Iraq War.
At this rate, we won’t have any allies soon.
The mere existence of a transcript of a phone conversation involving Michael Flynn, the former national security adviser (pictured), carries the potential for a Watergate-size scandal that would land on the Democrats.
The New York Times on Wednesday reported details about American counterterrorism officials' use of drone strikes in countries such as Yemen, as well as the working relationship between intelligence agencies in the U.S. and the U.K.
Documents published by The Intercept on Monday reveal that a British spy unit purported by officials to be focused on foreign intelligence and counterterrorism -- and notorious for using the “most controversial tactics of surveillance, online propaganda and deceit” -- is heavily focused on political groups and other domestic matters.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.