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Call Recording Featured Article
April 04, 2007
Call Recording Can Ensure Proper Security of VoIP for SMBs
By Susan J. Campbell, TMCnet Contributing EditorA simple visual scan of the crowd at a mall, the line at the fast food restaurant or executives at lunch should indicate to the viewer the importance of phone communication as each one of these scenarios will likely produce at least half of the population on a cell phone. We rely on our phones for communication, information and even entertainment. They are also often the only point of contact that we have with many of the companies with which we do business.
Call recording has long been a staple tool in the call center industry as a method for monitoring quality. Small businesses can also gain advantages from recording calls, whether they have a call center or not. And while call recoding can provide these businesses with the benefits of assured quality calls, it also provides a measure of security, especially in a VoIP
environment.
environment.VoIP, or voice over Internet Protocol, is a wonderful technology advancement that can provide the business with communication tools at a fraction of the cost of traditional systems. This element is especially important for SMBs who face the challenge of a smaller budget. As well, the technology comes with challenges of its own.
Since its inception and implementation throughout industries around the world, VoIP has presented some issues with quality. Service providers and developers have heeded complaints and worked to improve quality—which has been measurable. But another challenge remains – that of security.
Since calls that occur in a VoIP environment are transferred through the network and over the Internet, they are vulnerable to the same threats as those of the organizations’ main network. There is potential for hackers to infiltrate the system and gain access to calls, customer information and other proprietary data. In the age of heightened security protections, this is a significant concern for companies of all sizes.
While organizations can take certain measures to ensure the security of their VoIP systems, call recording can help to ensure that those security systems are operating as expected to prevent such things as eavesdropping and situations where someone may listen in to calls and hack back into and make calls from the IP PBX.
.Call recording can also help to identify any internal threats. Internal espionage from a tech-savvy employee, consultant or other third party with ample access to the IP infrastructure is a possibility and diligent call recording can help in identifying such breaches. This type of activity puts more at risk than just the privacy of the customer.
infrastructure is a possibility and diligent call recording can help in identifying such breaches. This type of activity puts more at risk than just the privacy of the customer. As businesses and consumers alike rely more and more on technology to drive communications, the risks increase for breaches in security; hackers work just as diligently at producing software to breach systems as the companies producing the security software. Organizations must have other applications in place to ensure secure systems and call recording can provide the tools necessary to ensure that the security systems are in fact secure.
Susan J. Campbell is a contributing editor for TMC (News - Alert) and has also written for eastbiz.com. To see more of her articles, please visit Susan J. Campbell’s columnist page.