There's a trial underway in New York City which involves extensive testimony from the FBI on its means and methods of tapping phone, fax and e-mail as well as covert video tapping and audio recording of the three defendants, one of whom is a NYC lawyer, Lynne Stewart, the other two usual Muslim suspects. The daily transcripts: http://cryptome.org/usa-v-ssy-dt.htm A lot of the early proceeding is dry legal maneurvering so you got to dig for the technical testimony. One defendant had 85,000 interceptions over several years, and as intercept systems changed from analogue (Lockheed Martin) to digital (Raytheon) the conversion and archiving process lost a crucial portion of the intercepts, a basis of charges. Defense lawyers are hammering the FBI witnesses on how this could have occurred, and in the process eliciting a good bit of interesting info on the means and methods, as well as the reputation and ability of the witnesses and the Lockheed and Raytheon interception, manipulation and archiving systems. Testimony shows that the FBI continues to rely upon service providers and contractors for the technical intercepts and freely admit that the bureau could not do it otherwise. What is done with the raw intercepts afterwards by the FBI collection, analysis and technical staff in the field and at the Quantico Engineering Research Facility, meticulously directed by US Attorneys to pick and choose among the data to support the charges, is what the defense is challenging. At some point the contractors will be called to describe what takes place beyond FBI capability. The prosecution appears not to want to go there, so accustomed are they to using the FBI as expert witnesses to set the limits of jury and the public exposure to the possibilities of counter-interception. Not a word yet about encryption, although some of the testimony has been sealed.