Toshiba Phone System

how realy good is voip and is it realy safe from hackers,intruders,virus?

voip phone systems

Public Comments

1. You mean compared with traditional analog lines that can be trapped and tapped at every junction along the way? =) I guess the best answer for this question will come from the determination of whether we're talking about enterprise VoIP systems that allow offices to extend through the Internet safely, or home consumer devices that connect through low-security broadband routers. Since you said VoIP phone systems, I'm going to take the tack of enterprise systems which are always kept behind VPNs, and although channeled through the Internet, are never exposed openly to public IPs. One advantage with VoIP phones is that you can force encryption at both ends of the conversation if you're worried about hacking or intrusion. There's not much risk of virus problems through the VoIP line since all the switch will respond to is SIP traffic and commands on specific ports. If you're worried about the phone switch itself, you could turn off all remote control and rely on serial console access only. It's a pretty safe setup when administered correctly, and for the paranoid, there are various levels of security and encryption that be put in place to safeguard the traffic, unlike your typical analog phone line which offers none of those options. Anyone with a telecom butt set can snoop your home and business phone lines if they simply gain access to the closet or street box. Intruding on an encrypted IP conversation takes a lot more savvy.
2. Theres been some debate recently about the security over VOIP, I remember reading a journal regarding programs able to dial in random numbers ans essentially cause DOS attacks on people. I think regarding viruses the protocol is safe (its a protocol not an application) but hacking is possible because of the limitations of IP. I'd consider it less secure than POTS (plain old telephone system). The up side is the obvious price though, no bundle of phone and internet is needed as only one line is needed for voip. The down side is security and speed which will be addresses as internet speeds increase.