Phoenix Network Forums

There are basically four ways to eavesdrop on a telephone call.

One, you can listen in on another phone extension. This is the method
preferred by siblings everywhere. If you have the right access, it's
the easiest. While it doesn't work for cell phones, cordless phones
are vulnerable to a variant of this attack: A radio receiver set to
the right frequency can act as another extension.

Two, you can attach some eavesdropping equipment to the wire with a
pair of alligator clips. It takes some expertise, but you can do it
anywhere along the phone line's path -- even outside the home. This
used to be the way the police eavesdropped on your phone line. These
days it's probably most often used by criminals. This method doesn't
work for cell phones, either.

Three, you can eavesdrop at the telephone switch. Modern phone
equipment includes the ability for someone to listen in this way.
Currently, this is the preferred police method. It works for both land
lines and cell phones. You need the right access, but if you can get
it, this is probably the most comfortable way to eavesdrop on a
particular person.

Four, you can tap the main trunk lines, eavesdrop on the microwave or
satellite phone links, etc. It's hard to eavesdrop on one particular
person this way, but it's easy to listen in on a large chunk of
telephone calls. This is the sort of big-budget surveillance that
organizations like the National Security Agency do best. They've even
been known to use submarines to tap undersea phone cables.