Cyber Incident Victim: Hillary Clinton
Date:
Aug 2014
Location:
United States of America
Summary
The German foreign intelligence agency BND intercepted at least one phone call involving Hillary Clinton during her tenure as US Secretary of State, as reported by German media. While German government sources claimed the interception was accidental, conflicting reports indicated the recording was not immediately destroyed, suggesting intentional action. This incident occurred amid heightened tensions between the US and Germany following reciprocal espionage allegations, including NSA surveillance of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's communications and Germany's arrest of a double agent passing information to US intelligence agencies. The mutual spying activities contributed to deteriorating diplomatic relations.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 1 motive | 1 technique |
| Threat Actor | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 actor | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
In August 2014, German media outlets Süddeutsche Zeitung, NDR, and WDR reported that Germany's foreign intelligence agency Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND) had intercepted at least one phone call involving Hillary Clinton during her tenure as US Secretary of State. The interception occurred under unspecified circumstances regarding time and location, with Clinton experiencing interruptions during her phone conversations. German government sources initially claimed the interception was accidental, but investigative journalists cited evidence that the call recording wasn't immediately destroyed, contradicting the accidental collection narrative. This incident emerged amidst heightened tensions following prior revelations that the US National Security Agency (NSA) had surveilled German Chancellor Angela Merkel's personal mobile phone. The reports indicated Germany had expanded its counter-espionage operations against US intelligence activities, including tracking US agents operating under diplomatic cover in Germany.
The Clinton phone interception incident exacerbated existing diplomatic strains between the US and Germany stemming from reciprocal surveillance allegations. Earlier in 2014, Germany had announced plans to intensify counter-espionage against the US and Western allies in response to NSA and GCHQ operations. These tensions escalated further in May 2014 when Germany arrested a 31-year-old BND officer who confessed to acting as a double agent for US intelligence, having exchanged over 200 classified documents for €25,000. Chancellor Merkel had previously condemned US surveillance practices as unacceptable following the NSA's monitoring of her communications. German media investigations also revealed that the BND had conducted surveillance operations against an unnamed NATO partner state, though specific attribution to this broader directive wasn't confirmed in Clinton's case. The incident underscored reciprocal intelligence conflicts without public confirmation of US response actions or technical details regarding the interception methodology.