telephone system

A hacker broke into a federal Homeland Security Department telephone system during the weekend and racked up about $12,000 in calls to the Middle East and Asia.

The hacker made more than 400 calls on a Federal Emergency Management Agency voice-mail system Saturday and Sunday, according to FEMA spokesman Tom Olshanski. FEMA is the principal government agency for helping victims of natural disasters.

The agency is part of Homeland Security, which in 2003 put out a warning about such a vulnerability.