Intercepting voice over ip communications and other data communications

Abstract

Methods and apparatus for intercepting communications in an Internet Protocol (IP) network involve maintaining dialing profiles for respective subscribers to the IP network, each dialing profile including a username associated with the corresponding subscriber, and associating intercept information with the dialing profile of a subscriber whose communications are to be monitored. Intercept information will include determination information for determining whether to intercept a communication involving the subscriber, and destination information identifying a device to which intercepted communications involving the subscriber are to be sent. When the determination information meets intercept criteria communications are established with a media relay through which communications involving the subscriber will be conducted or are being conducted to cause the media relay to send a copy of the communications involving the subscriber to a mediation device specified by the destination information.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for intercepting communications in an Internet Protocol (IP) network system in which communications between a subscriber of the system and another party occur through a media relay to which the subscriber and the another party address their communications destined for each other and which relays the communications between the subscriber and the another party, the method comprising:
 determining whether determination information associated with a subscriber dialing profile associated with the subscriber meets intercept criteria;   when the determination information meets the intercept criteria, causing the same media relay through which communications between the subscriber and the another party are relayed to produce a copy of the communications between the subscriber and the another party, while the same media relay relays communications between the subscriber and the another party; and   causing the same media relay to send the copy to a mediation device identified by destination information associated with the subscriber dialing profile.