Nation IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON, D.C. : FBI Eavesdroppers Seek New Devices
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Cellular telephones and other new technology are challenging the FBI’s ability to listen to the telephone conversations of criminal suspects, law enforcement officials say. The FBI is seeking $26.6 million next year to update its eavesdropping techniques. The new technologies include an increase in over-the-phone transmission of computer data, which can be encrypted through readily available software programs. Electronic surveillance, which includes telephone wiretaps and microphones hidden in places frequented by criminal suspects, is a key tool for investigating drug traffickers as well as white-collar and organized crime.
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