The CIA is paying AT&T more than USD 10 million annually to gain limited access to the telecom giant's vast database of phone records, especially details of phone numbers the spy agency believes are associated with overseas terrorism suspects, according to a media report.
Citing anonymous government officials, The New York Times said that AT&T provides the US spy agency with call data from phone numbers the agency believes are associated with overseas terrorism suspects.
The arrangement not only covers the calls of AT&T customers, but also any call that travels through its telecom infrastructure.
While most of the calls in question are made overseas, some calls to and from the US are included in the data haul, according to the report published yesterday.
Because the CIA is not allowed to spy on Americans living in the US, the identities of those callers are masked. In some cases, the FBI may issue an administrative subpoena to compel AT&T to provide uncensored data.
According to the Times, AT&T's participation in the programme is voluntary and not compelled by a court order.
AT&T did not confirm or deny the reported deal with the CIA, but it did say that sometimes the company is paid by governments to provide information.
"In all cases, whenever any government entity anywhere seeks information from us, we ensure that the request and our response are completely lawful and proper," said AT&T in a statement to CNNMoney.
"Like all telecom providers, we routinely charge governments for producing the information provided. We do not comment on questions concerning national security."
"As a matter of longstanding policy, the CIA does not comment on alleged intelligence sources or methods," the CIA said in a statement.
"The CIA protects the nation and upholds the privacy rights of Americans by ensuring that its intelligence collection activities are focused on acquiring foreign intelligence and counterintelligence in accordance with U.S. laws."
The agency added: "Under Executive Order 12333, the CIA is expressly forbidden from undertaking intelligence collection activities inside the United States 'for the purpose of acquiring information concerning the domestic activities of U.S. Persons,' and the CIA does not do so."
The report pulls back the curtain a little further on how personal data is collected by the US government -- with or without the consent of the communications companies that hold it, CNN reported.
The activities of the National Security Agency have drawn the most attention. Documents leaked by former agency contractor Edward Snowden revealed that the NSA has apparently tapped into the fiber-optic cables that carry data between the servers of major tech companies such as Google and Yahoo.
