VoIP 'poses unknown security threat'
11/12/2006 13:45

Proper regulation needs to be put in place before voice over internet protocol (VoIP) technology can replace traditional office equipment, a technology analysis firm has claimed.

According to Ovum, firms need to ensure that adequate security measures are put in place before chucking out traditional office equipment such as touch-dial telephones and fax machines.

A study released last week revealed that only 20 per cent of firms in the UK did not intend to introduce VoIP technology to the office environment, with 30 per cent claiming that they were already bringing it in to replace traditional office equipment.

But Ovum claims that many firms have not given due thought and consideration to the potential security risks that VoIP technology can pose to their company.

As with most new technological developments, it remains unclear what the potential risks are but Ovum has said that firms will be foolhardy to ignore them.

Graham Titterington, a principal analyst and security expert with Ovum, said: "We do not know which threats will become critical in VoIP or how long the process will take, but it would be foolish to ignore them."

However, Ovum has stated that VoIP technology could be an access route for hackers wanting to gain entry to company networks and sensitive data.

There are also claims that automated dialling could lead to many phishing scams using VoIP to carry out hundreds of pre-recorded calls.

Mr Titterington added: "What vendors and businesses need to focus on is protecting the gateway from traditional IP network attacks such as voice spam and toll fraud attacks.

"Enterprises must establish what place there is for VoIP in their activities and start building up defences using filtering technologies now."

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