Spies swapped emails about the internet entrepreneur's weight and wife while mocking his chances of getting New Zealand residency.

New Zealand's intelligence agencies will get a funding boost as concerns rise about the Islamic State (Isis), cyber-attacks and other

Spy chief Rebecca Kitteridge dreaming of a show featuring her very own spooks, writes Brian Rudman. "If the public could see the people of the SIS doing their work, they would be delighted to see what hardworking, terrific people."

Rebecca Kitteridge acknowledged a mistrust of intelligence agencies by many people, and said suspicion was natural given that, "we do everything behind closed doors".

The inquiry would study the way the GCSB chose its targets, what its decision-making process was and how it stuck to its duty to be politically neutral.

A wide-ranging review into New Zealand's intelligence agencies will be headed by former Deputy Prime Minister Sir Michael Cullen and lawyer Dame Patsy Reddy.

The “fabrication” claim has been part of the Prime Minister’s standard response to revelations of activities carried out by New Zealand’s electronic eavesdropping agency.

It would be surprising if our intelligence agencies were not spying on China in some way, writes David Fisher.

More New Zealanders were being monitored because of their links to Islamic State the head of the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service says.

Facebook pages encouraging violence on behalf of Isis are among factors increasing NZ's official terrorism risk and leading to a recruitment drive for new spies.

In the film Zero Dark Thirty, she was the persistent, conscientious CIA officer who finally tracked Osama bin Laden to his lair.

The MP who chaired the anti-terrorist legislation rushed through Parliament last week, MarkMitchell, says the bill was "100 per cent" justified.

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters called an expansion of the SIS's surveillance powers "Nazism" in Parliament last night.

Cheryl Gwyn won't comment on whether John Key's text exchange with Cameron Slater will be part of her investigation into the leak of her recent report into the SIS' handling of an OIA request from Slater.

SIS director Rebecca Kitteridge has been recalled today to answer questions by MPs on the committee considering extensions to the powers of the domestic spy agency.

Security Intelligence Service boss Rebecca Kitteridge should have told Phil Goff to get stuffed, writes Rodney Hide.

Deputy Prime Minister accepts it but says John Key runs the "most transparent government that New Zealand's ever seen".

Prime Minister John Key should accept it's "game over" and acknowledge his office's dirty tricks, says Labour Leader Andrew Little.

The Opposition says the PM John Key is "in denial" over a report which backs allegations his staff used information from the SIS for a smear campaign.

Prime Minister John Key says he will not offer an apology to Labour's Phil Goff over the involvement in the OIA request by Whaleoil blogger Cam Slater to SIS head Warren Tucker.

SIS director Rebecca Kitteridge has given three apologies over the actions of the SIS in 2011 when Warren Tucker was director - to Phil Goff, Andrew Little and John Key.

A report by intelligence watchdog Cheryl Gwyn has found blogger Cameron Slater requested and published damaging material about Phil Goff from the SIS.

If there's one thing that irks Rebecca Kitteridge, it is being referred to as the new head of the SIS spy agency.

The SIS, the country's domestic spying agency, looks set to gain greater powers in a quickfire overhaul of terrorism laws despite the PM's assertion there's a "low risk" to NZ.

Phone companies have revealed the extent of Govt agency spying on their networks, with more than 70 secret wire taps last year in New Zealand alone.

Prime Minister John Key says neither New Zealand's domestic and foreign spy agencies, the SIS and GCSB, have been involved in surveillance of journalist Jon Stephenson.

A former Defence Force chief says he is concerned by a leaked Defence Force document that lists investigative journalists as subversive threats.

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters says he wants the GCSB law clarified as quickly as possible with as little politicking as possible.

Kim Dotcom's company Mega is warily eyeing proposed legislation that may oblige it to open its systems to surveillance by spy agencies the GCSB and SIS.

Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom is trying to drag one of the country's most senior police officers into court.