New tech allows 'silent recording' of Skype conversations

A new technology developed by an California businessman could allow government agencies to 'silently record' conversations on Internet chat services like Skype.

Daily Mail reportes that until now, so called voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) services have been difficult to tap into, because of the way they send information over the web. The services convert analogue audio signals into digital data packets, which are then sent in a way that is costly and complex for third parties to intercept.

But now a California businessman has obtained a patent for a 'legal intercept' technology he said "would allow governments to "silently record" VoIP communications".

Dennis Chang, president of VoIP-PAL, a chat service similar to Skype, claims his system would allow authorities to identify and monitor suspects merely by accessing their username and subscriber data, the paper quoted Slate magazine as reporting. According to the patent, they could also be tracked down by billing records that associate names and addresses with usernames.