MI5 and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) have been ordered to pay £20,000 in damages to a journalist, after they illegally obtained his phone records.
Former BBC Journalist Vincent Kearney took a case at the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) in London.
It is believed to be the first time that MI5 has been directed to pay compensation to a journalist.
Kearney was the subject of secret operations aimed at discovering his confidential sources while he worked at the BBC in Belfast.