VoIP surveillance law submitted by FBI

Anyone familiar with gangster movies knows the typical scene where law enforcement taps into the mob boss’s telephone system to gather the important information needed to put an end to their reign of crime. Wiretapping is a practice that has been around for some time, but as technology has advanced and more people have stopped using from traditional phone systems, one can wonder how this time-honored crime fighting tradition will advance.

Tapping into a VoIP phone system is not like same as it is with an older product. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has realized this and is making strides to catch up. Tech blog Technorati has a recent column that examines a new proposal from the FBI that would improve the agency’s ability to tap into a VoIP system.

The law that the FBI is proposing would require VoIP providers to include a piece of code into their hardware that would make it easier for the feds to plug in and listen.

“If you create a service, product, or app that allows a user to communicate, you get the privilege of adding that extra coding,” said an industry insider quoted in the piece.

Just because this may be required does not mean every businesses using a VoIP phone system is going to be treated like famous Chicago mobster Al Capone. This would only be used by the authorities to listen to suspected criminals.

While there is a natural feeling of the invasion of privacy, one VoIP provider interviewed in the article said his company’s first priority is to cooperate with law enforcement to ease the “burden which futile resistance” would bring.

This development should not deter businesses from reaping the benefits that VoIP services and unified communication systems can bring. An IT consulting firm can help businesses find the best way to incorporate these solutions while remaining secure.