Billing method for customers having IP telephony service with multiple levels of security

• US 6,363,150 B1
• Filed: 12/30/1999
• Issued: 03/26/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Walker, Hopeton S, Bhagavath, Vijay K
• Primary Examiner(s): TIEU, BINH KIEN
• Application Number:
  US09/475,286
• Time in Patent Office: 817 Days
• Field of Search: 379/114.01, 379/114.05, 379/114.06, 379/121.01, 379/7, 379/35, 370/462, 370/463, 713/189, 713/200, 713/201, 713/166, 380/255, 380/257
• US Class Current: 380/225
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 1/00 Secret communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2535 adapted for voice communication over an Internet Protocol [IP] network Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network equipment and services H04M7/006; implementation or adaptation of Internet protocol [IP], of transmission control protocol [TCP] or of user datagram protocol [UDP] H04L69/16

Abstract

A method for initiating a security and billing feature request at the beginning or during an active telephone call. The telephone subscriber can select one of a plurality of security levels that may be required to ensure privacy during a call. Since each level of security is based on a different encryption and authentication algorithm, the levels of security can be incrementally priced. Thus, selecting an algorithm which is deemed to be very secure can be billed to the subscriber at a higher rate than an algorithm that is deemed to be less secure.

Claims

1. A method of allowing a user of an IP telephone network having multiple levels of security to initiate a change in security level during an in-progress call, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving and recognizing a security signal entered by the telephone network user;

associating said security signal with a request for a change in said security level;

providing the requested change in said security level in accordance with said security signal; and

assigning a cost value to said selection.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said security signal is a touch tone signal from a DTMF touch pad.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said security signal is an electronic signal from an electronic display having a user interface.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of receiving said touch tone signal includes the step of measuring the duration of said touch tone signal and discarding said touch tone signal when said duration is less than a predetermined amount.

5. The method of claim 1, further including the step of providing an acknowledgment prompt to the user indicating that said request for a change in said security level is being processed.

6. The method of claim 1, further including the step of connecting any other users of said in-progress call to an audible signal that encourages those users to wait while said change in security level is initiated.

7. The method of claim 2, further including the steps of receiving and recognizing a voice signal resulting from the telephone network user speaking a predetermined word;

associating the combination of said voice signal and said touch tone signal with a request for a change in said security level; and

providing the requested change in security level in accordance with said combination of touch tone signal and voice signal.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of receiving said touch tone signal includes the step of measuring the duration of said touch tone signal and discarding said touch tone signal when said duration is less than a predetermined amount.

9. The method of claim 7, further including the step of measuring the duration of time between said step of receiving a touch tone signal and said step of receiving a voice signal and discarding said signals when said duration is greater than a predetermined amount.

10. The method of claim 7 further including the step of recognizing the context created by said touch tone signal and using said context to improve the accuracy of said recognition of said voice signal.

11. The method of claim 7, further including the step of recognizing the context created by said touch tone signal and using said context to simplify said recognition of said voice signal.

12. The method of claim 7, further including the step of recognizing the context created by said voice signal and using said context to distinguish said touch tone signals intended to invoke a change in said security level from touch tone signals not intended to invoke a change in said security level.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the step of associating said touch tone signal and voice signal with a request for a change in said security level further includes the step of associating said combination of touch tone signal and voice signal with a call security feature group containing a plurality of security levels.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein said voice signal is a predetermined spoken word.

15. The method of claim 1 further including the step of maintaining a database correlating said cost value with each said selected change in security level.

16. The method of claim 15, further including the step of identifying to the user said cost value.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said user may request a different securlity in response to said identifying step.