Back in my misguided youth, I followed the case of Kevin Mitnick with some interest. While I was always more partial to Kevin Poulsen and his free-wheeling hi-jinx. I do recall the concern over whether or not Mitnick was capable of hacking the National Security Agency. I doubt the stories at the time and was right to do so according to Mitnick. However, it seems Mitnick was able to tap the NSA's phones as he recalled in his memoir:
The National Security Agency temptation was an itch I couldn't resist. NSA's telephone service was provided through a phone company switch in Laurel, Maryland, which we had already gained access to, Directory assistance listed the agency's public phone number as 301 688-6311. After randomly checking out several numbers with the same prefix, Using a test function for switch technicians called "Talk & Monitor," I was able to set up circuit to listen to random calls in progress. I popped in on one line and heard a man and a woman talking. Hardly able to believe I was actually listening in on the NSA, I was thrilled and nervous at the same time. The irony was great- I was wiretapping the world's biggest wiretappers."Ultimately, Mitnick panics and bugs out, never to return. The truth is, however, had he fixated on hacking the NSA rather than private companies, he would have been better. As shown by Vice President Joe Biden, the NSA and the rest of the American Intelligence Community has a history of covering severe crimes in the names of "national security."
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