and therefore locating the intercepting phones was no longer possible (the phones were apparently switched off), and that Vodafone had incorrectly purged all access logs. Police rounded up and questioned as suspects persons who called the monitoring phones, but all callers claimed they called these phones because their number was previously used by another person. Ericsson has checked their equipment in other markets world-wide and has not found the illegal software installed anywhere else. "As far as Ericsson knows, this is a unique incident. We have never discovered anything like this before or since." Vodafone spokesman Ben Padovan said. Fallout The investigation into the matter was further hampered when Greek law enforcement officials began to make accusations at both Vodafone and Ericsson, which forced experts on the defensive. A recent appeal of the main opposition party, PASOK, to form an investigating parliamentary committee was rejected by the governing party. In December 2006 Vodafone Greece was fined €76 million by the Communications Privacy Protection Authority, a Greek privacy watchdog group, for the illegal wiretapping of 106 cellphones. The fine was calculated as €500,000 for each phone that was eavesdropped on, as well as a €15 million fine for impeding their investigation. On October 19, 2007, Vodafone Greece was again fined €19 million by EETT, the national telecommunications regulator, for alleged breach of privacy rules. On September 2011, new evidence emerged indicated the US Embassy in Athens was behind the telephone interceptions. The key evidence of complicity was that out of the 14 anonymous prepaid mobile phones used for the interception, three had been purchased by the same person at the same time as a fourth one. The fourth phone called mobile phones and landlines registered with the US Embassy in Athens. With a sim card registered to the US Embassy, it also called two telephone numbers in Ellicott City and Cantonsville, Maryland, both NSA bedroom communities. A criminal investigation was launched, and in February 2015, Greek investigators were finally able to finger a suspect, William George Basil, a NSA operative from a Greek immigrant background. Greek authorities have issued a warrant for Basil's arrest, who has since gone into hiding. See also National Committee of Telecommunications and Post NSA warrantless surveillance controversy Covert listening device (includes other cases) The Cuckoo's Egg References External links International Herald Tribune: Greek cell phones tapped Athens News Agency: Gov't: Unprecedented mobile phone-tapping plot uncovered Greek