I just had an interesting conversation with a customer service rep for Verizon Wireless.

I was interested in getting access to my call history for the current billing cycle. Of course, I tried to get the information using Verizon Wireless Online first. Unfortunately, all that was available there was the history starting at the last billing cycle -- as far as I could see. I assumed I was doing something wrong, so I called customer service. Then things got interesting.

They informed me that in fact the current billing cycle is not immediately available (other than a charge summary) -- I was not just overlooking it.

"No problem" I thought -- and just asked them to read me the history for the particular day I was interested in. Much to my shock and dismay, the rep said he could not give the information by law (what law they didn't specify). According to him, call history information allegedly cannot be released -- not even to the customer -- until billing occurs.

Many people have since assured me that their wireless providers do allow access to current cycle information -- so either Verizon is lying (or mistaken), or most other wireless providers are breaking the law. Hmmm...

The rep went on to say that the information could only be released with subpoena (to law enforcement or legal representation), and their legal department would have to be contacted.

"Fine" I thought, since my inquiry in fact does have to do with a law suit I am planning. I figured I would just have my lawyers call Verizon's legal department.

So I asked for the legal department number.

"Only a lawyer or law enforcement can have that", the rep informed me.

Now that flabbergasted me. I attempted to clarify that I didn't want the number to call it myself, but rather to give it to my lawyers (I have no desire to pay lawyers to hunt down a number I could just give them). Apparently it did not matter -- the number to Verizon's legal department can only be given to an individual who happens to be a lawyer or officer of the law.

Does anyone else find this disturbing? Here we have a major utility not only unwilling to disburse to customers a key aspect of their own information (information I might add that is simultaneously being spied on by the Federal government in the name of anti-terrorism), but the place at which to petition them for that release is itself secret.

There you have it -- your own sensitive information restricted to the legal and government castes. In America.

But not altogether surprising in post-PATRIOT-Act America.