The foreign connection

Narus, NICE and Verint (formerly Comverse Infosys) are Israeli-formed companies with links to Israeli intelligence services that provide the hardware and software for wiretapping domestic communications within the United States as well as for international communications. James Bamford in his 2008 book The Shadow Factory states that “virtually the entire American telecommunications system is bugged by two Israeli-formed companies with possible ties to Israel’s eavesdropping agency – with no oversight by Congress” (page 246). 

extreme close ties with the FBI’s central wiretapping office…Thus, the company that secretly taps much of the country’s telecommunications is now very closely tied to the agency constantly seeking greater access to the switches…But as earphone-clad FBI agents were listening for terrorists and criminals through Verint’s taps, top executives from the company and its parent, Comverse, were themselves engaging in an orgy of theft, bribery, money laundering, and other crimes…Unknown to the public, an entire national telecom network was channeled through a powerful foreign-made bug controlled by a corrupt foreign-based company with close links to a foreign electronic spy agency.