Scotland Yard said that the journalist was arrested for alleged hacking of stolen mobile phones in south London.
The man was held after going to a police station in south London by appointment.
He was arrested on suspicion of offences under the Theft Act, Computer Misuse Act and on suspicion of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, and remains in custody.
The Yard said in a statement: "The arrest relates to a suspected conspiracy involving the gathering of data from stolen mobile phones and is not about seeking journalists to reveal confidential sources in relation to information that has been obtained legitimately."
The unnamed journalist is the 12th person to be arrested under Operation Tuleta, which is investigating computer hacking and other privacy breaches.
Operation Tuleta is being conducted along with other investigations such as Operation Elveden, which is looking at alleged corrupt payments to public officials, and Operation Weeting, which is looking at alleged phone hacking.
