Verizon Wireless reported on Thursday night that some of its employees have “accessed and viewed” President-elect Barack Obama’s  personal cellphone account with no authorization. The account, said, has been inactive for several months and was tied to a flip phone, probably a Motorola Razr, not a smart phone like the BlackBerry Obama has also been spotted.

“All employees who have accessed the account - whether authorized or not - have been put on immediate leave, with pay,” Verizon announced. “As the circumstances of each individual employee’s access to the account are determined, the company will take appropriate actions.”

Lowell McAdam, Chief Executive, sent apology to Mr. President in a statement: “We apologize to President-elect Obama and will work to keep the trust our customers place in us every day…”

However, Verizon spokesman Jeffrey Nelson refused to comment further than the company’s prepared statement and not specify how many employees accessed the account or what kind of information was viewed.

It is much likely that Obama will not be able to keep his BlackBerry after he is sworn into the office for security reasons, and this incident indicates why the precaution is necessary.