http://news.com.com/2102-1034_3-5173320.html?tag=st.util.print
CNET News
Cable taps into wiretap law
By Ben Charny
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
http://news.com.com/2100-1034-5173320.html
Story last modified March 16, 2004, 11:00 AM PST
Cable operators are starting to comply with federal law that has long
required telecommunications carriers to help police conduct electronic
surveillance.
The cable companies are not required to do so yet, but they see the writing
on the wall. According to one source, Time Warner Cable is the first cable
operator to begin trying to comply with the federal wiretap law.
Vernon Irvin, executive vice president at security vendor VeriSign, said
during a recent interview that his company had signed a deal with a "major
cable operator" in the United States to help it follow the Communications
Assistance For Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).
Irvin, however, did assert that other cable companies are sure to follow.
That's because the FBI has made public a far-reaching proposal to require
all broadband Internet providers--including cable modem and digital
subscriber line (DSL) companies--to restructure their networks to support
easy wiretapping by police.
"The cable guys arenmt waiting," Irvin said.
The FBI's proposal would, for the first time, force cable providers that
sell broadband to come under the jurisdiction of 1994's CALEA, which
further defined the already-existing statutory obligations of telecom
carriers to help police conduct electronic surveillance. Telephone
companies that use their networks to sell broadband have already been
following CALEA rules.
Because the eavesdropping proposal has the support of the Bush
administration, the Federal Communications Commission is expected to take
it very seriously. Last month, FCC Chairman Michael Powell stressed that
"law enforcement access to IP-enabled communications is essential" and that
police must have "access to communications infrastructure they need to
protect our nation."
Irvin said that details of the VeriSign deal will be announced next week.
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R. A. Hettinga