It was discovered that the security division of TelecomItalia, a privatised telecoms group, was running an espionage operation that exploited the firm's access to private data.
In this dismal context it is no wonder that a row has broken out in Italy, where control of TelecomItalia recently passed to Pirelli, a tyre and cables group.
The board of cash-strapped TelecomItalia rejected the proposal, arguing that the pay-off was unwarranted, given how poorly shares in the group have performed.