Service and the Security Implication Voice over Ip - Dissertation Example

Asterisk was developed as a cheap alternative to PBX by Mark Spencer. Since then the face of VoIP has never been the same again. Since 1989 the development of VoIP as an alternative transport system for telephony signaling has progressed to a point that almost all of the telephone infrastructures all over the world are being used as data transporter along with voice channel. VoIP simply enabled telecommunication companies to maximize their infrastructure by making several channels available in a single line.

By planting voice data into packets and transporting these packets via the internet the telecommunication industry can now service several customers with a single line. However, a voice when transported via packets is in fact considered data. Being in such form, they are then subject to the same vulnerabilities as ordinary data. This dissertation shall tackle the different security threats and vulnerabilities of VoIP. This dissertation shall also tackle solutions that are available and their permutation that can be adopted by any organisation.1.1 OVERVIEWConvergence in the use and application of technology is inevitable because infrastructure and its raw materials are simply expensive, not only in terms of installation cost but also in terms of its maintenance (Ellis, Pursell, & Rahman, 2003).

The onus therefore for telecommunication service provider companies is to maximize its usage thereby maximizing the revenue that can be derived from a single infrastructure. Convergence spawned Voice over IP and the demand for information about the new technology has never been the same. According to statistics between years, two thousand to two thousand and nine the industry has grown one hundred seventy-nine thousand thirty-five point eight percent (Unuth, 2011). It should be noted that the simplicity in which the technology can be installed and the accessibility of the technology in its free and basic form contributes to its popularity.

The ease in which the technology can be procured has made the installation of some VoIP systems cost-effective and could have contributed to the steep increase in its use.