Verizon once again proves why they should not be trusted with anyone’s private data. It was revealed today that multiple Verizon employees have accessed President-elect Obama’s cell phone records without authorization. The employees have apparently been put on paid leave until further notice.
According to telecom analyst Michael King of Gartner, the snoops could likely see the numbers Obama had called, how long his conversations lasted and when he made his calls.
The incident is reminiscent of a time earlier this year when State Department employees were caught snooping into Obama’s passport records.
Also worth remembering: Obama is no doubt only one of many citizen’s having their privacy violated by cellular companies like Verizon. A 2006 lawsuit filed against Verizon alleges the existence of a third party data center being operated out of Quantico Virginia — home to a Marines base as well as the center of FBI surveillance operations– where eavesdroppers could access "all content and all information concerning the origin and termination of telephone calls placed on the Verizon Wireless network as well as the actual content of calls." For more on this bit head over to Wired or the Electronic Frontier Foundation.