NSA accused of tapping Swisscom phone lines

Swisscom phone lines have allegedly been tapped by the NSA Keystone

The Swiss Federal Prosecutor’s Office is investigating whether America’s National Security Agency (NSA) tapped Swisscom phone lines. The accusation comes from Austrian parliamentarian and whistleblower Peter Pilz. 

According to Pilz, Germany’s foreign intelligence service gathered data from several countries on behalf of the NSA. Pilz presented a number of relevant documents in Bern on Wednesday, including a list of key transmission lines. A list from 2005 showed nine Swisscom lines ending in Switzerland: seven in Zurich, two in Geneva. 

Pilz declined to say where he got the list. He assumes that Swisscom is a victim. 

Investigations are already underway in Switzerland. As the Federal Prosecutor’s Office told the Swiss News Agency on Wednesday, it opened a criminal case some time ago in connection with “big data” as well as Swisscom data. 

In addition, the Swiss Federal Intelligence Service is in contact with the pertinent companies and institutions. 

Pilz says the spying project was called “Eikonal” and ran from 2005-2008. The Austrian Green Party politician is currently touring Europe to draw attention to the case. In Bern he was hosted by the Swiss Green Party.