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German Government Plans to Listen In on Skype Conversations

by Tim Stevens on January 29, 2008 at 01:57 PM

German Government Looking to Go Skype SnoopingIn America, online privacy is a huge concern to many. The Internet was once seen as the last bastion of complete anonymity and freedom, but those days are coming to a close as more and more folks with malicious intent take their businesses online. In Germany the police force there seems set to start using software to hack target computers and monitor Skype communications, actions that may or may not be legal in the country.

Skype uses technology called Secure Sockets Layer, or SSL. It encrypts data transmitted over the network, making that data very difficult to capture and decode. For this reason many who do not want their conversations monitored use Skype. However, if you can manage to install a program onto the Skype user's computer, you can then intercept all Skype communications -- along with just about anything else you like.

A leaked document from a German political party indicates that Bavarian police may be using software that does exactly that on surveillance targets. This will come at an estimated cost of around $3,700 per target plus another $8,800 per month in monitoring fees. That's a lot of dough, and a lot of legal concerns as well, given that no warrant is currently required before the police install this software. The government there is still deciding the legality of the whole process and may not have any firm conclusions for months.

From BetaNews

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Tags: Security, Skype, SSL

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