Oh bugs, are the All Blacks paranoid?

Do the All Blacks have a genuine fear of being spied on or are they just being paranoid?

The ‘‘bugging’’ device found in the All Blacks’ Sydney hotel last week could be entirely innocent or unrelated to Steve Hansen’s team.

Or it could be the tip of an espionage iceberg.

Until it’s properly investigated and an explanation found, it will have the whole rugby world looking nervously over their shoulders.

Where will it end? Will snipers soon be posted at rugby grounds to blast low-level drones out of the skies?

Are rugby officials and coaches right to be concerned, or are they modern-day Captain Queegs, the ball-bearing rattling skipper from The Caine Mutiny novel and movie, who saw a conspiracy around every corner?

The All Blacks, understandably protective of their intellectual property, have a history of suspecting spooks are trying to discover their trade secrets.

Back in 2000, then All Blacks head coach Wayne Smith just about had a pink fit when New South Wales centre Nathan Grey was spotted at the All Blacks’ Manly training venue with a Mitchell’s coaching reign, a time when the All Blacks had a real siege mentality.

Former Springboks prop Balie Swart, who was coaching Nelson Bays in 2003, was asked to make himself scarce when the All Blacks trained at Nelson’s Trafalgar Park in the leadup to the 2003 Rugby World Cup.

The security fears did not abate at the end of Mitchell’s coaching ‘‘journey’’.

The All Blacks, under new coach Graham Henry, alleged camouflaged cameramen had been snapping pictures of their practice in London in 2005.

That outburst prompted exengland international Nigel Melville to write a newspaper column stating that ‘‘pot, kettle, black’’ came to mind.

The former Gloucester coach claimed All Blacks’ assistant Wayne Smith, while coaching English club Northampton, had a string of ‘‘advisers’’ watching opposition teams training.

The All Blacks got very jumpy after Crusaders coach Robbie Deans defected to the Wallabies in 2008.

Hansen accused Australia’s Channel Seven of giving footage of an All Blacks’ training session to the Wallabies camp before a 2008 Bledisloe Cup test.

‘‘It’s not a rumour, it’s a fact, which is really disappointing,’’ Hansen told reporters after the All Blacks’ 28-22 test win.

He said a member of the Australian management team had confirmed as much to an All Blacks official.

‘‘It was Channel Seven ,andi don’t know if it was more than one session but I definitely know of one session, then they gave it to the Australians,’’ Hansen said.

‘‘It’s disappointing that the Australians actually used it. We know they used it because they told us. It was a bit dumb, but they did.’’

Hansen’s comments were rejected by Channel Seven.

Hansen, a former Christchurch cop, has also found himself on the receiving end of a covert filming accusation.

Former Wales Rugby Union video analyst Alun Carter wrote in his book, Seeing Red, Hansen organised a spying session on Mitchell’s All Blacks while he was Wales coach in 2002.

‘‘Steve [Hansen] was busy installing [video analyst] Gareth Potter and his camera in an apartment block ... overlooking the All Blacks training session at Sophia Gardens...

‘‘Steve paid particular attention to their lineout drills and decided to change our pattern of lineout defence for the game.’’

When confronted with the claims in 2008 after his accusations about the Australians, Hansen said: ‘‘I’m not even going to talk about that. Read the book, it’s a good read apparently.’’

It’s not only the All Blacks who get toey at the prospect of prying eyes.

The Springboks were apoplectic in 2001 when a mystery cameraman at a Perth training session turned out to be Wallabies coach Eddie Jones’ ex-randwick clubmate Damien Holden.

It was the Wallabies’ turn to spit tacks at the 2015 Rugby World Cup when a photographer with a long lens was spotted in a field overlooking a closed training session at Bath before their pool game against England.

England, who trained behind 2.5m high fences, denied they were spying on the Australians.

The All Blacks also had big barriers around their World Cup training grounds.

Caution is not confined to the test rugby arena.

New Zealand Super Rugby and NPC coaches have been known to froth at the mouth if local photographers are still pointing their lens after the first 10 minutes of a practice session.

Of course, rugby isn’t the only security-conscious sport? Try getting access to an English Premier League club set-piece session.

But before anyone points the bone at the wounded Wallabies on this occasion, it’s probably better to let to let the investigators do their work.