Method and apparatus for enabling communications assistance for law enforcement act services

• US 9,054,887 B2
• Filed: 09/13/2012
• Issued: 06/09/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Corporation (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property II LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Croak, Marian, Eslambolchi, Hossein
• Primary Examiner(s): HUYNH, KHOA B
• Application Number:
  US13/615,519
• Publication Number:
  US 20130003614A1
• Time in Patent Office: 999 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 43/00 Arrangements for monitoring or testing data switching networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/00 Network architectures or network communication protocols for network security cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00; network architectures or network communication protocols for wireless network security H04W12/00; security arrangements for protecting computers or computer systems against unauthorised activity G06F21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/30 for supporting lawful interception, monitoring or retaining of communications or communication related information circuit switched telephony call monitoring H04M3/2281
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/61 for supporting one-way streaming services, e.g. Internet radio
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/2281 Call monitoring, e.g. for law enforcement purposes; Call tracing; Detection or prevention of malicious calls
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/006 Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42

Abstract

The present invention enables packet-switched network providers, e.g., VoIP network providers, to use commonly deployed components and capabilities to support surveillance services, e.g., CALEA services. Specifically, signaling and media streams that flow through Border Elements can be forked and simultaneously redirected to a surveillance server, a CALEA Server in addition to the terminating endpoint. Additionally, a Media Server (MS) can unobtrusively join a third leg to a communication media path between the CALEA Server and the two, calling party and called party, endpoints. A CALEA Server provides the ability to identify and collect content of voice telephone calls traversing the VoIP Network, as mandated by the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act.

Claims

1. A method for providing a surveillance service in a communication network, comprising:

receiving, by a processor, a call setup message for a call with a calling party number and a called party number;

determining, by the processor, whether at least one of;

the calling party number or the called party number requires surveillance; and

performing, by the processor, surveillance on the call when surveillance is determined to be required, wherein the performing comprises;

instructing a border element to be traversed by a first media path for the call to simultaneously fork a portion of the call to a second media path when surveillance is determined to be required, wherein the instructing the border element to fork the portion of the call is for forking the call setup message via the second media path to a surveillance server.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication network is voice over internet protocol network.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining comprises:

determining whether at least one of;

the calling party number or the called party number is registered on a surveillance list.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the portion of the call further comprises conversation media data on the first media path associated with the call.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the instructing the border element to fork the portion of the call is further for forking a conversation media stream on the first media path via the second media path to a media server to be bridged to the surveillance server.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the border element is instructed by a call control element.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations for providing a surveillance service in a communication network, the operations comprising:

receiving a call setup message for a call with a calling party number and a called party number;

determining whether at least one of;

the calling party number or the called party number requires surveillance; and

performing surveillance on the call when surveillance is determined to be required, wherein the performing comprises;

instructing a border element to be traversed by a first media path for the call to simultaneously fork a portion of the call to a second media path when surveillance is determined to be required, wherein the instructing the border element to fork the portion of the call is for forking the call setup message via the second media path to a surveillance server.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the communication network is a voice over internet protocol network.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the determining comprises:

determining whether at least one of;

the calling party number or the called party number is registered on a surveillance list.

10. The tangible non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the portion of the call further comprises conversation media data on the first media path associated with the call.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the instructing the border element to fork the portion of the call is further for forking a conversation media stream on the first media path via the second media path to a media server to be bridged to the surveillance server.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the border element is instructed by a call control element.

13. A system for providing a surveillance service in a communication network, comprising:

a processor of a call control element; and

a computer-readable medium storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising;

receiving a call setup message for a call with a calling party number and a called party number;

determining whether at least one of;

the calling party number or the called party number requires surveillance; and

performing surveillance on the call when surveillance is determined to be required, wherein the performing comprises;

instructing a border element to be traversed by a first media path for the call to simultaneously fork a portion of the call to a second media path when surveillance is determined to be required, wherein the instructing the border element to fork the portion of the call is for forking the call setup message via the second media path to a surveillance server.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the communication network is a voice over internet protocol network.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the determining comprises:

determining whether at least one of;

the calling party number or the called party number is registered on a surveillance list.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the portion of the call further comprises conversation media data on the first media path associated with the call.

17. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructing the border element to fork the portion of the call is further for forking a conversation media stream on the first media path via the second media path to a media server to be bridged to the surveillance server.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the border element is instructed by a call control element.