China has called the US arrogant and selfish after it charged two Chinese citizens with stealing trade secrets and other sensitive information from American government agencies and corporations.

Espionage at the very heart of the government has always occurred. Johanna Lowry-O’Reilly looks at some of the more famous cases in the United Kingdom.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has told politicians she stands by her 2013 complaint that "spying among friends" is unacceptable as she appeared before a committee examining alleged US surveillance in Germany.

North Korea has said it has arrested a US university student for alleged anti-state acts

The British Home Secretary Theresa May has said police will not get automatic access to people's web browsing history under new rules being proposed this week.

Embarrassed by leaked conversations of three successive French presidents and angered by new evidence of uninhibited American spying, France demanded answers from the Obama administration and called for an intelligence “code of conduct” between allies.

French president Francois Hollande has branded revelations the US spied on him and his two predecessors "unacceptable" and says France will not tolerate anything that threatens its security.

Israeli officials have denied a report that the country spied on the United States’ handling of sensitive negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme.

The Swedish security service has accused Russia of conducting “extensive” espionage operations, using as many as one third of its diplomatic staff in the country for clandestine intelligence gathering.

Jim McGuinness has disassociated Donegal’s management team from the man caught observing Kerry’s training session last week but insists similar ‘espionage’ is widespread in the game.

Outrage has greeted revelations that Ireland was the only one of 29 countries to refuse to allow Vodafone to reveal how many phone taps it had ordered.

Vodafone, one of the world’s largest phone companies, revealed the scope of government snooping, saying authorities in some countries are able to directly access an operator’s network without seeking permission.

The State’s human rights watchdog has recommended a tightening of the rules for Garda covert surveillance operations.

Confusion reigns as to what action may or may not have been taken at Cardiff over the alleged leaking of team information to Premier League rivals Crystal Palace.