JEDDAH, 13 Junuary 2005 — Cisco Systems yesterday announced new security features for its IP Communications system that enhance voice privacy and further the company’s standing as the “world’s leading provider of secure IP Communications solutions.
The new and currently shipping Cisco CallManager 4.1 IP telephony system extends voice media and signaling encryption support for new 7940G and 7960G Cisco IP phones and over 3.5 million installed Cisco 7940G and 7960G IP phones. Media encryption helps to ensure the security and privacy of telephone conversations and signaling encryption protects against tampering with telephone signaling packets. Cisco CallManager 4.1 now also interoperates with a wide range of Cisco Media Gateways, including the Integrated Services Router line, to provide voice media and signaling encryption support. “Media encryption support for Cisco Media Gateways complements the strong Voice over Virtual Private Network (V3PN) and threat defense security capabilities these platforms already offer,” Ghazi Atallah, General Manager, Cisco Systems Middle East, said. Media encryption on media gateways enhances voice privacy on Cisco IP phones in remote offices and provides more secure connectivity to legacy devices, including digital telephones and fax machines. In addition, Cisco is also announcing secure private messaging for Cisco Unity, an industry-first encrypted messaging feature that protects the contents of voice messages.