Several interesting stories in the news that warrant mention so they don't just get lost in the news flood.

From VoIPNews

Free Encryption Software for VoIP Calls updated for Windows platform
Zfone and PGP developer Phillip Zimmerman offers peer-to-peer security software to encode VoIP telephony

Joscelin Cooper

Zfone, a new program that provides two-way encryption of VoIP calls, has had a timely update considering the recent outcry over accusations of domestic spying leveled against the government.

The new version of the program, now working for Windows systems, was released last Sunday. It operates in a slightly different manner than traditional encryption software in that the encryption key(very long sequences of numbers that are hard to break using brute force searches) are only exchanged between the two parties making the call. Traditional encryption software, such as Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), generally relies on a third party, such as a centralized database, to store the keys.

I downloaded Zfone and took a very brief look.

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Several mentions of ON World's recent report. Here's one from Mobile Tech News

One Hundred Million Mobile VOIP Users in 2011
Posted: 23-May-2006 [Source: ON World]

[ON World predicts WiFi enabled mobile entertainment devices will make up 36% of all mobile VOIP devices sold in 2011.]

San Diego -- As more consumers carry their iPods with them everywhere, they are hoping Apple will add WiFi and VOIP for the killer converged mobile entertainment device, according to a new study from ON World.

"The PC industry has found an ideal services model and this is the 'real time Internet,'" says Mareca Hatler, ON World's Director of Research. "Services such as VOIP, video, music, radio, news and instant messaging coupled with mobile devices such as a WiFi enabled iPod, and the ubiquity of broadband will result in 100 million consumer mobile VOIP users in 2011."

ON World interviewed 100 key technology influencers in several consumer markets as well as electronics retailers and discovered that 35 percent were interested in VOIP combined with mobile entertainment devices.

Convergence becomes Collision

"Convergence between the PC and Telecom industries has been the 'mantra' for the last several years. Skype, Google, device makers such as Apple, and municipal mesh infrastructure providers such as Tropos are creating the 'real time Internet' without them," says Hatler.

The PC industry will ship more than two times as many mobile VOIP devices per year as the Telecom industry in 2011.

This really has huge implications

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Here's a press release that's of that kind that makes you say hmmmmm

Covergence Teams with CounterPath to Deliver Bullet-Proof VoIP Security for SIP Softphone Companies can now offer customers complete VoIP security
(May 23, 2006)

VANCOUVER, May 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - CounterPath(TM) Solutions, Inc. (OTCBB: CTPS), a provider of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), Video over IP, Instant Messaging (IM), and Presence SIP multimedia applications and softphones, and Covergence, the leader in scaling, securing and controlling VoIP and other real-time services based on the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), announced today that Covergence has certified CounterPath's eyeBeam(TM) 1.5 Video SIP softphone application for use with its Eclipse(TM) solution, the industry's first SIP security and management solution. With this announcement, CounterPath and Covergence can now offer customers "bullet-proof" VoIP security that prevents any unauthorized access to the user's call and protects the service provider from attacks intended to disrupt or disable their service.

As VoIP continues its penetration into the marketplace, concerns around VoIP security continue to present a major hurdle for organizations seeking to take advantage of the promised benefits of VoIP technology, including cost savings, improved service levels and enhanced productivity. In order to provide customers with a "bullet-proof" VoIP security solution, Covergence has tested the ability to communicate between the CounterPath eyeBeam 1.5 Video SIP softphone and Eclipse SIP Session Manager using the IETF standards; Transport Layer Security (TLS) for signaling information and its counterpart the Secure Real-time Transport Protocol (SRTP) for voice and video traffic.

Any time someone claims bullet-proof, they're painting a bullseye on their chest and asking to be proven wrong. It's a kind of bravado that never serves any vendor well. I don't fully buy a solution that claims to offer"bullet-proof" VoIP security that prevents any unauthorized access to the user's call and protects the service provider from attacks intended to disrupt or disable their service. Someone's drinking their own marketing kool-aid.

That said, the solutions described can offer greatly enhanced security services. They bring another layer of security to your defense in depth strategy.

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Gizmo Project now supports both Asterisk and, from the look of things, other SIP proxies.

Gizmo Project 2.0* (That's the GOOD kind of Asterisk)
This week, SIPphone is releasing Gizmo Project 2.0* (note the asterisk), our popular free VoIP software for high-quality, easy-to-use PC calls. Usually, the star-shaped character means there's an exception such as "supply limited", "annual contract required", or some other tiny-print qualifier that makes the offer seem not as good as it initially appears. This time, however, the asterisk symbol stands for something positive - Asterisk support.

I've already downloaded and made a couple of test calls. The new software works great. Seemed fine in my quick test with an Asterisk system in my lab. My next step is to configure it with Freeworld Dialup to see how that works.

Technorati Tags: VoIP, Zfone.mobile VoIP, Convergence, Counterpaht, Bullet-Proof VoIP, bold claim, Gizmo Project, SIP proxies, Asterisk