Federal Wiretap Intelligence — Trend Analysis 2012–2024
U.S. Courts Wiretap Reports · Tables 3, 7 & 9 · Compiled May 2026
Conspiracy Peak
469
2017 · +1,463% vs 2014
Record Arrests
12,415
2016 · 2.8x nearest year
Persons/Tap 2024
1,875
vs 100 in 2014 · +1,775%
Racketeering Rebound
+350%
28 in 2023 → 126 in 2024
Conspiracy & Racketeering Wiretap Authorizations
Number of court-authorized wiretaps per year by offense category
Conspiracy Racketeering Corruption
2015–2017: Conspiracy authorizations surged 1,463% from a 2014 baseline of 30, peaking at 469 in 2017. Racketeering nearly doubled simultaneously. Both remain elevated above historical baselines through 2024.
Arrests Resulting from Wiretap Intercepts
Total arrests per year of intercept installation (Table 9)
2016 Anomaly: 12,415 arrests from intercepts installed in 2016 — nearly 3x any other single year. No comparable public enforcement action has been documented to explain this spike.
Average Persons Intercepted Per Wiretap Order
Higher values indicate surveillance of large networks vs. individuals
2024 Network Shift: 1,875 persons per order vs ~100 in 2014. This scale is consistent with RICO-style network surveillance rather than individual targets.
Source: U.S. Courts Annual Wiretap Reports, Tables 3, 7 & 9 (2012–2024) · uscourts.gov