Global articles on espionage, spying, bugs, and other interesting topics.

Spying shows phone network weak spots

SPYING SCANDAL: A voicemail tampering scandal engulfing Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World tabloid demonstrates the vulnerability of phone networks and the fallibility of the people who help maintain them.

THE ACCUSATIONS: The British tabloid is accused of breaking into voicemail accounts of various celebrities and dignitaries —and even crime victims and their families— in a relentless hunt for scoops.

THE REPERCUSSIONS: The fiasco has led to prison terms for an investigator and a former reporter, caused several major companies to pull advertising, and is complicating Murdoch’s attempt at a multibillion-pound takeover of British Sky Broadcasting.