[germanier]

Capturing any communication is a criminal offense in Germany unless you were explicitly allowed to or it was intended as a broadcast. This is a constitutionally guaranteed right of the people communicating. There is no blacklist. Police, ATC, and similar are not even mentioned in the laws that are used to prosecute those cases.

As far as I know there have been investigations into the Google wifi case but I have never heard of anything coming out of it.

The law in its current form is pretty new, it even was clarified just a few months ago to specifically mention non-acoustic communication.

[laumars]

Thank you. Maybe the same is true in the UK (where I reside) as well and I was mistaken about it being legal?

I'm not sure if this is the relevant legislation but I've found the following in section 48 of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006:

A person commits an offence if, otherwise than under the authority of a designated person—

(a) he uses wireless telegraphy apparatus with intent to obtain information as to the contents, sender or addressee of a message (whether sent by means of wireless telegraphy or not) of which neither he nor a person on whose behalf he is acting is an intended recipient, or

(b) he discloses information as to the contents, sender or addressee of such a message.

Source: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/36/section/48