Update on Internet wiretapping for phone calls [priv]

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

http://news.com.com/2100-7352-5184603.html?tag=nefd_hed
Sununu's proposal also addresses the controversial issue of VoIP 
wiretapping, saying that VoIP companies that provide links to the 
existing telephone network--a category that would include Vonage, for 
instance--must provide some "access to necessary information to law 
enforcement agencies." But the access requirement, a key concern of the 
FBI, would not apply to instant messaging applications or peer-to-peer 
services like Skype.

http://news.com.com/2100-7352_3-5184774.html?tag=nefd_top
Law enforcement officers can now eavesdrop on every call made by Cox's 
nearly 1 million voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone subscribers. 
Police can already tap calls on 12 of Cox's 13 telephone markets because 
they rely on traditional phone equipment equipped with eavesdropping 
abilities. But in December, Cox deployed VoIP, a much cheaper 
alternative that uses the unregulated Internet. Roanoke, Va., is the 
first of several small markets where Cox is deploying VoIP technology.

http://news.com.com/2100-7352-5181428.html
Net-phoning provider VoicePulse says it plans to use encryption to 
secure calls, part of an industry trend that could pull in business 
customers but raise problems for law enforcement wiretaps.
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