Italian criminals use Skype to evade wiretaps
Italian crooks are making greater use of internet telephony because of the widespread use of wiretaps in the country.
Customs and tax police in Milan are complaining that drug dealers and other organised criminals are using tools such as Skype in an effort to frustrate investigations, the BBC reports. Investigators cite the example of a suspect drug dealer advising his accomplice to contact him by Skype before forwarding details about a deal to buy 2kg of cocaine.
A recent survey from German think-tank the Max Planck Society found that Italy led the way in electronic surveillance with 76 intercepts per 100,000 head of population. Telecommunication interception is a preferred technique in anything from counter-terrorism and mafia investigation to political corruption probes, and even investigations into match fixing in football.
