In each of the three telecom rooms, which are about half
the size of a tennis court, a handful of computers known as
“boxes” straddle the data pipelines, Chakchouk says. Their
function is to siphon off communications, mostly by searching
for key words, according to Saadaoui.
“You get all the traffic going through these boxes,”
Saadaoui says.
Once the system flagged a suspect e-mail, a fiber optic
network under the streets of Tunis carried it from the telecom
offices to the Interior Ministry’s operator room, Saadaoui says.
Moez Ben Mahmoud Hassen, a spokesman for Tunisie Telecom,
said the company “denies any possible relation with such
practices.” He stressed that it follows the law and respects the
confidentiality of communications. Asked about the company’s
activities during Ben Ali’s government, he said it was a matter
for the courts and declined to elaborate.
Communications through mobile operator Orascom Telecom
Tunisie, also known as Tunisiana, were not monitored, according
to a statement released by company spokeswoman Fatma Ben Hadj
Ali. The country’s other mobile operator, Orange Tunisia, didn’t
respond to requests for comment.
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