[VOIPSEC] NY Times, ABC News reporting on fraud scheme using hacked VoIP service providers

[Henry Sinnreich]

To all the folks here who have argued that using the phone is safer than
using Skype, this indictment for VoIP fraud should give some food for
thought

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/nj/publicaffairs/NJ_Press/files/pdffiles/penacompl
aint.pdf 

Specifically:

- Are VoIP carrier networks less "obscure" that Skype? (If they were
transparent, how would they compete?)

- Are VoIP providers using outside auditors, such as for accounting for
example? (Are such audits published, as they have been for Skype?)

- Are there accepted auditing guidelines for VoIP, similar to what the
financial industry is using?

- How can a VoIP provider distinguish between a pitch for a security product
from the real thing?

Until these can be answered to everybody's satisfaction, it appears the
above mentioned fraud could have been avoided using Skype, though admittedly
at 2c/minute for PSTN termination (or free for IP-IP).

Let the flames come in :-)

Thanks, Henry