Deutsche Telekom is facing a criminal investigation accused of illegally monitoring calls of certain employees and journalists in a scheme aimed at stopping press leaks. The so-called “Clipper” and “Rheingold” surveillance programs allegedly tracked several hundred thousand landline and mobile calls over a period of several years.
In a statement, Deutsche Telekom said the allegations made against the company involve call detail records and “do not relate to any unlawful use of the content of calls — in other words they do not concern the tapping of calls.” Nevertheless, Deutsche Telekom’s CEO, René Obermann, said he is cooperating with the public prosecutor’s office to enable a rapid criminal investigation of the situation.http://www.telekom.com
