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Companies must evaluate VoIP service providers with their security concerns
April 9, 2006
By: Alice Osborn
Once companies convert to a VoIP service provider,
security and data integrity become more of a priority than
with traditional telephony. Callers’ voices are now data and
that packaged data needs to be secured. And so, a security
solution needs to be found that ensures flexibility from
VoIP service providers that eliminate most of the risk from
external attacks.
In most cases, voice data is managed through a virtual
private network (VPN), which simplifies the delivery of the
voice packet and provides greater security for the
VoIP-using company. However, Voice over IP providers must
stay ahead of their customers’ security concerns, while
moving the voice technology towards open architectures and
less restrictive systems. Buyers of these services must also
protect their VoIP system just as they would treat their
data networks.
To address these growing VoIP concerns, the Voice over IP
Security Alliance (VoIPSA)
was formed earlier this year to provide additional
collaborative user support from VoIP vendors, universities,
providers and information technology leaders. The mission of
this organization is to improve the public’s awareness of
VoIP security issues and to find the best practices for VoIP
privacy and security via discussion lists, white papers, and
sponsorship of VoIP research projects.
More voice traffic equals more concerns
With increased voice and data traffic (more so than with
traditional telephony), the packeted voice data on the
network soon becomes overloaded and delayed. Security also
suffers, leaving the network vulnerable to hackers and
viruses. To prevent these occurrences from crippling a
company’s VoIP network, VoIPSA suggests establishing regular
packet inspections and testing VoIP frameworks and their
components. Another suggested security precaution is
ensuring that the VPN network is not accessible from the
Internet and that there are adequate firewalls and frequent
security patches. VoIPSA also emphasizes security research
as one of the best practices to overcome VoIP system
vulnerabilities.
In addition to spreading viruses, hackers want to have
access to free phone calls. They also wish to manipulate and
reassemble the packeted voice data. To prevent the packeted
voice data from becoming vulnerable, the VoIP network needs
to have strict access control lists. In addition, if the
VoIP network is isolated onto a virtual LAN, the risk of
external attacks can be lessened.
Finally, the VoIPSA suggests that companies tailor their
security system to match their VoIP network and provider.
Finding a VoIP security solution is not an easy process, but
a necessary one to ensure the VoIP system’s integrity and
reliability.
About the Author
Alice Osborn is a successful freelance writer and
contributor to Audio-Conferencing-Guide.com. Your definitive guide to everything you need to know about
audio driven communications, including audio conferencing,
conference calling services, and VoIP telephony for business
and personal use.
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