Is Skype Eavesdropping On You?
The popular chat service is reportedly sharing conversations and user data with police who are tracking terrorists and pedophiles — sparking concerns about privacy
Skype has reportedly come under pressure from law enforcement agencies to allow surveillance of conversations that might help catch criminals. Photo: Martin Ruetschi/Keystone/CorbisSEE ALL 13 PHOTOS
Skype, the online phone and messaging service, is expanding “its cooperation with law enforcement authorities to make online chats and other user information available to police,” say Craig Timberg and Ellen Nakashima at The Washington Post. That revelation follows a stream of speculation in the blogosphere that Skype, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2011, has made changes to its nearly impenetrable communications system to eavesdrop on user conversations, a move that internet privacy advocates have described as “terrifying” and “sickening.” Here, a guide to the controversy:
Is Skype really eavesdropping?
No one knows for sure, but Skype allegedly changed the architecture of its communications system to make “‘lawful interception’ of calls easier,” says Jamie Condliffe at Gizmodo. The reported change came during “technical upgrades to Skype that were instituted to address outages and other stability issues,” say Timberg and Nakashima, an explanation that looks suspiciously like a coverup to some security experts.
Why would Skype be working with police?
Skype is a favorite form of communication among criminals because its “strong encryption and complex peer-to-peer network connections” make it nearly impossible to intercept calls, says Ryan Gallagher at Slate. Indeed, “jihadis recommended the service on online forums,” say Timberg and Naskashima, as opposed to using traditional telephones or email. So just like other telecommunications companies, Skype has come under pressure from law enforcement authorities around the world to share information that could lead to the breakup of criminal networks run by terrorists, drug gangs, and pedophiles.
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