TMCnet News
Tom Ridge Gives VoIP a Nod, Cites Lack of Communication in New OrleansBy Erik Linask
Associate Editor, INTERNET TELEPHONY
As expected, the largest speaker draw at this week’s INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference & EXPO in Fort Lauderdale was Thursday morning’s keynote address by Tom Ridge, the first U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security and former Governor of Pennsylvania.
Governor Ridge explained to the standing room only audience that the globalization of commerce and technological advancement that most of the world sees as a great positive, can just as easily be used by extremists looking to injure us. He stressed that we must understand and accept the new reality that a global threat exists, and that it needs a global reaction, which should be led by the United States. We are the primary target, Ridge continued, and undermining our economy is terrorists’ primary goal, and the planning of another major attack or two in the U.S. is an ongoing thing. But, he added, you have to take that all in context, meaning that if we accept that fact, we can go about our business, much as we did at the height of the Cold War.
Ridge also addressed the fundamentals behind the Department of Homeland Security. First, he said, we need to manage risk — because you cannot eliminate all the risk, you have to manage it.
The entire country also needs to be integrated, because the private sector controls nearly 85% of the resources and infrastructure needed to effectively secure our borders. Homeland security must be a national mission.
“Every citizen benefits from the freedoms we enjoy, and every citizen has a role to play in protecting those freedoms,” he said. Ridge pointed out, however, that the first aid and communications plans that everyone is now adopting have been encouraged by the government for years.
The third principle relates to embedded technology. With advanced technology, we allow ourselves and our government the tools necessary to effectively defend the country. This is where VoIP comes into play; it can be embedded into our infrastructure.
Ridge is, in fact, a proponent of the benefits of VoIP technology, specifically its mobility, cost, and ubiquity. The truth is, VoIP telephony can be a benefit not only in combating terrorism, but in any catastrophic situation, or WMEs (Weapons of Mass Effect), as Governor Ridge labeled the recent hurricanes that struck the Gulf Coast. Imagine the benefit if first responders could have access to precise location information, images, video, and data transmission in emergency situations, whether terrorism, weather, or accident.
As an example, Ridge described the ability of the local government in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina to set up and communicate via a VoIP system when the command center went down, land lines were out, and cell towers were downed. An IT team member fortunately was familiar with VoIP technology and was able to set up a makeshift call center with minimal difficulty.
Homeland Security experienced a “huge failure to coordinate and communicate before, during, and after the event,” deemed Ridge. He explained that “it comes down to leaders using the tools available to them to serve their nation; it’s about networks and relationships and about training.”
As far as continued growth of the IP telephony industry and the measures being considered by Congress, Ridge suggested the VoIP community should try to drive the situation rather than waiting for things to happen on their own — become a participant in government, rather than an onlooker.
But continued growth and the associated use of biometrics raises additional questions as to how the government should or should not use new technologies. How much information should the government have about you? How much do you want it to have? Who should have access to that information? How should the information be used? There needs to be a balance here that needs to be struck, and it will be debated vigorously, but hopefully intelligently.
Governor Ridge believes the NSA electronically intercepting phone calls made and/or received by people believed to be associated with terrorist organizations to be a lawful extension of the President’s responsibility and duty in protecting the country. It is merely an example of how technology will continue to give us as Americans the ability to strengthen ourselves.
We cannot afford to operate as if events like September 11 [or Mother Nature’s havoc] won’t happen again, said Ridge. But can we afford to live in fear? No, says Ridge: “We don’t live in fear, we live in freedom — and that’s the way it will continue to be.” VoIP is just one technology that will help us live freely and be good citizens at the same time.
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