UN expresses concern to AT&T over alleged US wire tapping of Internet at New York head quarters

The United Nations has expressed concern to telecom giant AT&T following reports that the company allowed the National Security Agency of United States to wiretap its Internet communications at the UN headquarters. The UN is a customer of the telecom company.

The UN also invited tenders for new communications contracts. Vannina Maestracci, the UN spokeswoman, said discussions with AT&T on the reported wiretapping would continue "over the coming months." The matter came to light after a report in the New York Times, which said AT&T provided technical assistance to the U.S. spy agency to execute a secret court order that permitted wiretapping of all Internet communications at the New York headquarters of the United Nations.

Inviolability of UN

It is widely believed that many countries, including the United States do gather intelligence from the UN headquarters as it is a gathering place for diplomats from the 193 member states and thousands of UN officials, representatives of non-governmental organisations and media. Vannina Maestracci, the spokeswoman noted that the “inviolability of the United Nations is well established under international law, and we expect member states to act accordingly and to respect and protect that inviolability.”

However, Maestracci also made it clear that the United Nations has all the security and safety measures in place, reports the Associated Press. The New York Times report mainly cited leaked NSA documents between 2003 and 2013, provided by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. It said, unlike the past when NSA spying on UN came up, this is the first time, the information about a court order and AT&T's involvement has been revealed.

The United Nations spokesperson recalled that in 2013, the U.S. had promised that it will not spy on the world body’s communications after reports said the NSA had gained access to the UN video conferencing system. Under the 1961 Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, functions of the United Nations, diplomatic missions and other international organisations need to be protected, reports Reuters.

Fairview program

The telecom giant literally added a new collection capability to the National Security Agency, which the latter described as "'live' presence on the global net, reports ABC 7 News . The “Fairview program” led to the forwarding of more than 1 million emails a day to the NSA's headquarters in Maryland. So far, there was no reaction from the NSA or AT&T on the findings from the Snowden files. One of the documents even reminded NSA officials to be polite when visiting AT&T facilities, the New York Times report said, because, "this is a partnership, not a contractual relationship.”

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