Clipper and Traffic Analysis

[hughes@ah.com (Eric Hughes)]

>Does anyone here have any thoughts as to whether Clipper enables traffic
>analysis or tracing more easy than it normally is under Switching System
>7? 

SS7 uses out-of-band signalling.  The clipper LEAF is an in-band
signal.  Therefore a tap for clipper yields two kinds of information,
content and identities.

Tapping an SS7 signalling network is more expensive and more difficult
to justify.  More expensive because it runs packet-switched, more
difficult because it's not the conversation of any particular party
except the phone company.

Eric