This article is more than 11 years old

This article is more than 11 years old

Verizon, one of the biggest telephone companies in the US, today apologised to the president-elect, Barack Obama, over a security breach involving his phone bill records.

Lowell McAdam, the president of Verizon, issued a statement saying: "This week we learned that a number of Verizon Wireless employees have, without authorisation, accessed and viewed President-elect Barack Obama's personal cell phone account."

All staff who accessed the account, whether authorised or not, have been put on immediate paid leave pending an inquiry.

Verizon and Obama's team said that the cell phone had not been active for months.

Obama's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, said Verizon had informed the Obama team that his phone records had been improperly accessed.

Gibbs said the records could have shown numbers and the frequency of calls but little else.

Verizon has yet to establish why some of their employees allegedly sought access.

McAdam said: "Employees with legitimate business needs for access will be returned to their positions, while employees who have accessed the account improperly and without legitimate business justification will face appropriate disciplinary action.

"We apologise to President-elect Obama and will work to keep the trust our customers place in us every day."