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VOIP Tappings Under Scrutiny
dynooomite writes "CNN.com is reporting that Privacy groups have asked an appellate court to overturn an FCC rule that allows for phone-taps on VOIP calls. The privacy groups made their case saying taps would seriously hinder innovation on the web."
it already does it Britain (not to the FCC, obviously)
FGD 135
To "sit on a wire" anywhere you should need a probable cause and a warrant.
Anyone without this is simply hacking, which is illegal.
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The rule applies to VoIP providers such as Vonage that use a central telephone company to complete Internet calls. It also applies to cable and phone companies that provide broadband services. The companies must comply by May 2007.
Apparently not. I think the really interesting issue there is would be third party companies that were to provide certificate services for ad hoc encryption be subject to the requirement
What does innovation have to do with it? Aren't our constitutional rights more important than if companies can make money off something?
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That does seem a little overemphasized. I think the taps on VoIP does raise (again) the concern of what is the FCC's business. If I should at my neighbor over my fence, do I have to do it in such a way that is compliant with FCC's regulations? What if we decide to use tin cans connected with a string? When does it fall inside the FCC's four flags?
Furthermore, May 2007 isn't very far away for system-wide changes. So then it comes back to the triangle of manufacturing Quality - Price - Speed -- pick any two. If they say it's a requirement within 2 years, indrectly they may be demanding a chunk of revenues going into maintenance instead of expanding service or what have you. Either way, it doesn't seem like it will help consumers in the average case.
IANAL, but judging by the similar pattern of events with the "broadcast flag" it has to do with the fact that this is a regulation created by the FCC, not a law passed by Congress. FCC decisions can be challenged in court because the FCC has a specific, limited mandate and you can argue that it has exceeded it's authority.
Also, the "seriously hinder innovation" line is most likely a rhetorical tool more than the actual central legal argument of the case
Articles like this show that the people making laws do not understand what their talking about. It's very easy to encrypt your data (including voice conversations). If the US decides that all VOIP should be tapable/unencrypted, the bad guys can use a service based in a foreign country that doesn't force phone taps. They can then communicate. Or better yet, they can develop their own software to encrypt phone calls and would anyone notice? No way, it would just sounds like static or something. Sorry guys, but there's no way to block people from encrypting stuff and keeping their keys locked safely in their own possession. Unless of course, you make encryption illegal, which would be difficult to do, because the privacy hounds would never let something like that happen.
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VoIP is the web, in a way. It's just a different protocol. If you read the SIP standards, they are very much like instant messaging standards, so can the FCC tap instant messages too? And it's not that different from normal HTTP either, ultimately, so can they tap that? At what point is it under their juridiction? If you are continuously sending packets of voice? What about sending an entire recording at once? How is it different?
These are the questions that I believe were behind the point that it will ruin innovation.