The Deutsche Welle reports that security staff are accused of breaching privacy laws:

Security staff at telecoms giant Deutsche Telekom are suspected of breaching German data privacy laws during a secret attempt to identify the sources of high-level leaks to the media, the company said Saturday, May 24.

Using the company’s own records of millions of numbers dialed, the dates and the durations, the internal-security unit had hunted for possible matches between news reporters and Telekom directors.

Bad news for security staff when they abuse the trust they need to perform their duties effectively. The fallout from this scandal will be interesting to watch. Security has apparently not only breached privacy laws meant to protect customers, but has done so in a direct conflict with senior management.