[The Chosun Ilbo, June 26 2007] The Specter of Illegal Eavesdropping

A revision of the Protection of Communication Secrets Act that would legalize the monitoring of cell phone conversations is a long-cherished dream of the National Intelligence Service. To permit mobile phone tapping since the 2005 eavesdropping scandal, the NIS has lobbied the legislature and the media as if its life depended on it. The service wants to do openly what it has been doing furtively. Unless cell phone conversations are monitored, the NIS claims, there are great big holes in counterterrorism and counter-espionage operations. In the investigation of the so-called 386 spy ring scandal last year, intelligence authorities complained of difficulties because they couldn’t legally listen in to mobile phone conversations.