According to a report in the Dec. 16 issue of the daily Právo, undercover security from the broadcaster secretly takes pictures and videos of people around the RFE/RL office and on surrounding streets off Wenceslas Square. The images are sent to intelligence officials in the United States, the daily's unnamed source said.

The ÚOOÚ has confirmed it began investigating the station's surveillance policies after Právo's report hit newsstands.

At press time, RFE/RL spokeswoman Anna Rausová had not responded to requests for comment.

The RFE/RL headquarters northeast of the National Museum has been under heavy security since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Funded by the U.S. Congress, the station was founded during the Cold War to broadcast pro-democracy messages to communist states. It now targets its broadcasts at Muslim countries in Asia and the Middle East.

The Czech Security Information Service (BIS) spokesman Jan Šubert said, "The BIS knows of no violations of the law in connection with the security measures taken."

Secret surveillance is legal if it's done in a public place and doesn't involve classified information, he added, comparing it to the work of investigative journalists.

Others say it violates privacy.

"If a security agency photographs or records in public places, then it's processing personal data," said Filip Pospíšil from Iuridicum Remedium, a group dedicated to civil rights issues.

People should have the right to grant permission before data is shared, he said. A security agency creating such a database is required to register with the ÚOOÚ. The broadcaster has not done so, ÚOOÚ spokeswoman Hana Štěpánková said.

The Interior Ministry has no part in the surveillance and has not probed the allegations, spokesman Radek Holý said, but added, "I cannot rule out that we might look into it sometime in the near future."

If RFE/RL is found guilty of violating privacy laws, a 5 million Kč fine could be levied. That amount could double depending on the number of individuals affected.