2008 Woodie Awards
New wiretap order could affect Webster
By: Andy Dierker
Issue date: 11/10/05 Section: News
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An order by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has expanded a federal wiretapping law. The law now requires universities and other organizations to update their internet infrastructure to make it easier for the government to tap in. The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA), requires schools to change the way their networks receive and store data and they are expected to pay for the changes themselves.
The 11-year-old CALEA used to only require that conventional phones had built-in capabilities that allowed them to be wiretapped by the federal government. Changes to the law last year expanded the provision to include internet traffic.
But the real change for Webster and other schools came in August, when the FCC ordered all "facilities-based broadband internet providers" to update their services to allow for the tapping of internet traffic, such as e-mail and voice-over-internet-protocol telephone service. The Justice Department claims this is a necessary step to allow them to catch terrorists and other criminals "in the face of rapidly advancing technology."
Larry Haffner, vice president of information technology for Webster, has said the new changes would make Webster fall under the umbrella of schools that must make changes in compliance with the law, but said that it's still very early in the process.
"We've had some very brief initial discussions with our networking guys on what it would take," Haffner said. "But at this point it's very early, and there are still some vague (parts of the bill) regarding how it will apply to higher education."
Haffner referred to challenges to the law on behalf of higher education from organizations such as the American Council on Education (ACE) and Educause, who are filing lawsuits to try to get colleges and universities exempt from the new provisions.
"We've got 18 months from Nov. 14, 2005 to make the changes," Haffner said.
Haffner said that he had no idea how much it would cost the school, but it would probably be very expensive. ACE has claimed the shared costs could be as high as $7 billion, and would do little to actually help in catching terrorists.
The 11-year-old CALEA used to only require that conventional phones had built-in capabilities that allowed them to be wiretapped by the federal government. Changes to the law last year expanded the provision to include internet traffic.
But the real change for Webster and other schools came in August, when the FCC ordered all "facilities-based broadband internet providers" to update their services to allow for the tapping of internet traffic, such as e-mail and voice-over-internet-protocol telephone service. The Justice Department claims this is a necessary step to allow them to catch terrorists and other criminals "in the face of rapidly advancing technology."
Larry Haffner, vice president of information technology for Webster, has said the new changes would make Webster fall under the umbrella of schools that must make changes in compliance with the law, but said that it's still very early in the process.
"We've had some very brief initial discussions with our networking guys on what it would take," Haffner said. "But at this point it's very early, and there are still some vague (parts of the bill) regarding how it will apply to higher education."
Haffner referred to challenges to the law on behalf of higher education from organizations such as the American Council on Education (ACE) and Educause, who are filing lawsuits to try to get colleges and universities exempt from the new provisions.
"We've got 18 months from Nov. 14, 2005 to make the changes," Haffner said.
Haffner said that he had no idea how much it would cost the school, but it would probably be very expensive. ACE has claimed the shared costs could be as high as $7 billion, and would do little to actually help in catching terrorists.