There is a big todo about the cops being able to tap into VoIP networks provided by Cox Communications. CNET calls it a "new era in law enforcement." I'm not as impressed.

As a telecommunications project manager, I didn't have to be told what CALEA is. (1994 Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act) CALEA has been around for a decade now, and chances are that both your home phone and cell phone are CALEA compliant. That means that with a court order, the cops can make the phone company provide them with certain reports. Typically there are two types of request. One request is for a written report on who you called and who called you during a certain time frame. Most CALEA request fall into this category. This was undoubtedly used to try to find that missing college student. Whenever you hear that police determined certain calls were made during certain times in some kidnapping/disappearance/murder case, the information was most likely provided in response to a CALEA request.

The other type of request is one for actual voice wiretapping. That is the one where police actually have the ability to listen in on active calls. Naturally, these requests are much more rare, and require more justification to the court.

Given that CALEA has been around for 10 years now, and extending the breadth of the act to include VoIP doesn't seem too drastic. I'm not saying that the cops necessarily should have this power. But if you are freaked out over the miniscule amount of VoIP calls subject to the regulation, you should feel the same way about regular land line calls. And if you want to take this power away from the government, you should also be prepared to live with the consequences; which would include their investigation being hampered should one of your loved ones go missing.