FEDERAL
BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION CALLS CABLELABS®'
RELEASE
OF ITS PACKETCABLE™ ELECTRONIC
SURVEILLANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATION “A POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT” FOR
CABLE INDUSTRY COMPLIANCE WITH THE COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANCE FOR
LAW ENFORCEMENT ACT (CALEA) AND THE LAWFUL ACCESS NEEDS OF FEDERAL,
STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT
Washington, DC
- The FBI responded today to CableLabs®' release of a technical
specification known as the "PacketCable Electronic Surveillance
Specification" which was developed to facilitate the cable industry's
compliance with the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act
(CALEA).and meet the lawful access needs of federal, state and local
law enforcement. Founded in 1988 by members of the cable television
industry from around the world, Cable Television Laboratories ("CableLabs®")
is a non-profit research and development consortium that is dedicated
to pursuing new cable telecommunications technologies and to helping
its cable operator members integrate those advancements into their business
objectives. PacketCable represents the cable industry's interoperable
interface specifications for a wide variety of services. PacketCable
networks use Internet Protocol (IP) technology to offer services such
as Voice over IP, otherwise known as IP telephony.
"The latest
issue of this technical specification represents a milestone in the
cable industry's efforts to address law enforcement's concerns regarding
VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) services made available by cable
companies," stated Kerry Haynes, FBI Assistant Director responsible
for Investigative Technologies. Mr. Haynes added: "This specification
is an extremely positive development which ultimately will empower federal,
state and local law enforcement agencies with the technical capability
to continue to protect the public by effectuating court-authorized electronic
surveillance. We look forward to working with the industry in its development
of technical solutions based on this specification and with companies
as they implement solutions into their IP networks."
CableLabs initial
effort to specify a technical solution for electronic surveillance of
IP-based networks was released in December 1999 as Issue 1 of the "PacketCable
Electronic Surveillance Specification." Following its release,
law enforcement identified a number of capabilities absent from Issue
1. Since that time, CableLabs has actively sought law enforcement input
into its technical specification process to ensure that law enforcement's
need to intercept communications lawfully were addressed adequately.
The recent release of Issue 4 of the PacketCable Electronic Surveillance
Specification represents the culmination of the cooperative endeavor
between CableLabs and law enforcement in establishing a set of technical
requirements to facilitate law enforcement's future use of court-authorized
electronic surveillance as a critical tool in protecting public safety
and national security.
Stressing the vital
nature of electronic surveillance, Assistant Director Haynes remarked
"the Report of the 9/11 Commission and the testimony provided by
a host of experts during Commission hearings recognized the importance
of intelligence in our war against terrorism. Intelligence is critically
dependent upon law enforcement's technical collection capabilities and
such capabilities rely on adherence to technical standards such as this
one. The primary mission of the FBI and law enforcement as a whole is
to prevent and protect against future terrorist attacks. In that battle,
real-time technical interception capabilities are to the war against
terrorism what radar was to the Second World War - without it our ability
to see enemies approaching is extremely limited."
In summarizing
the recent cable specification, Assistant Director Haynes stated "this
document is an extraordinary example of law enforcement and industry
collaboration in the public interest. It stands as a model for future
industry-law enforcement cooperative efforts." Mr. Haynes extended
special recognition and appreciation to Time-Warner, Comcast, CableVision,
and Cox for their diligent efforts in collaboration with CableLabs to
achieve this milestone in the provision of critical electronic surveillance
capabilities to law enforcement.
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