According to ABC News, “intelligence analysts are also investigating technical clues that (Amyan) Zawahri’s most recent audio message was phoned in via computer phone, using voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP.” These reports contradict with earlier reports from an April 2007 report in al-Sharq al-Awsat that stated that al-Zawahiri has not used the Internet or a telephone since 2003 out of fear of being traced by hostile security services (Previous Report).
Although it is unclear whether or not or to what extent al-Zawahiri, as-Sahab, or other members of al-Qaeda utilize VoIP for communications, it is useful to understand why al-Qaeda members would and would not communicate with VoIP technologies.
VoIP Pros and Cons
First, al-Qaeda would likely be interested in using VoIP for the same reasons that the private sector is interested in it. VoIP is cost-effective especially for long distance calls and therefore offers a geographically dispersed organization with limited resources the ability to communicate and coordinate actions.
Second, al-Qaeda would likely be interested in using VoIP as a way to alter its standard communication procedures. If al-Qaeda operatives always communicated in the same manner then it is likely security services would eventually be able to defeat the security protecting the chosen communication method – no matter how robust. However, if al-Qaeda constantly altered its communications procedures then it will be much more difficult for security services to reliability monitor its communications. As long as VoIP applications have the proven ability to enable communications among geographically dispersed operatives, then al-Qaeda would likely be interested in adding this technology to its arsenal of communication options.
In contrast, al-Qaeda members would likely not use VoIP out of fear of exposing their physical location. Under the right conditions a VoIP call will leave a much larger trail of evidence than a standard phone call made through traditional landlines or a cellular network. This evidence may be used to identify the location of origin of the call and therefore could be used by security services to track down al-Qaeda operatives.
Communication is Essential
However, it is unclear whether VoIP calls are, from al-Qaeda’s perspective, less secure than other more traditional means of communication. A number of VoIP applications allow for encrypted communications that could effectively protect the content of the communications. In contrast, a standard phone call through a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is not encrypted and therefore the content of the communications are not protected. Further, the highly centralized nature of the PSTN allows security services to monitor communications through a small number of choke points. In contrast, VoIP communications are routed through the Internet and are therefore decentralized to the point that centralized monitoring is nearly impossible. Therefore, security services must know in advance which service providers and VoIP carriers al-Qaeda operatives use in order to trace the calls location of origin.
Therefore, it is likely that al-Qaeda operatives utilize VoIP technologies to communicate – especially for less sensitive communications such as propaganda messages.
