Computer-based method and apparatus for controlling, monitoring, recording and reporting telephone access
A method and apparatus for managing institutional telephone activity utilizing a computer-based telephony management unit to connect institutional telephones with outside telephone lines. The unit provides institutional users with fully automated, direct dial and collect calling privileges for local, long distance, and international calls. The unit contains a database for storing the calling privileges and restrictions of institutional users, for recording calling transactions made by the users, and for managing user monetary accounts. The unit can record up to 400 hours of conversation in a digital format. The unit provides various administrative capabilities, including user account management, audit trails, transaction reports, centralized management and report capabilities, and detection of fraudulent calling.
1. A method, provided by an institutional telephone system, of managing telephone activity between a calling party and a called party, wherein the calling party is an institutional party and the called party is a non-institutional party, the method comprising:
providing an account for the calling party, wherein the account comprises calling party entitlements, at least some entitlements based on the calling party's class;
creating an institutional communication connection with an institutional terminal following initiation by the calling party, wherein the institutional communication connection comprises an external communication request from the calling party, the communication request sufficient to establish communication between the calling party and the called party;
identifying the calling party;
analyzing the external communication request received from the calling party to determine its called party parameters;
comparing the called party parameters to the calling party entitlements to determine whether the calling party is entitled to communicate with the called party and denying the external communication request if the comparing returns a negative result;
determining whether the account is active and denying the external communication request if the determining returns a negative result;
placing the calling party on hold;
establishing communication with the called party;
calculating a rate to charge the called party for the communication;
announcing the rate to the called party;
prompting the called party for acceptance or refusal of the rate;
receiving a response from the called party; and
establishing communication between the calling party and the called party based on the response.
2. A method, provided by an institutional telephone system, of managing telephone activity between a calling party and a called party, wherein the calling party is an institutional party and the called party is a non-institutional party, the method comprising:
providing an account for the calling party, wherein the account comprises calling party entitlements, at least some entitlements based on the calling party's class;
creating an institutional communication connection with an institutional terminal following initiation by the calling party, wherein the institutional communication connection comprises an external communication request from the calling party, the communication request sufficient to establish communication between the calling party and the called party;
identifying the calling part;
analyzing the external communication request received from the calling party to determine its called party parameters;
comparing the called party parameters to the calling party entitlements to determine whether the calling party is entitled to communicate with the called party and denying the external communication request if the comparing returns a negative result;
establishing the communication based on the comparing;
determining whether the account is active and denying the external communication request if the determining returns a negative result:
placing the calling party on hold;
initiating the connection with the called party;
detecting completion of the connection;
providing identification of the calling party to the called party;
prompting the called party for acceptance or refusal of communication with the calling party; and
receiving a response from the called party to the prompting,
wherein the response determines whether the calling party and the called party are connected.
3. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the comparing comprises:
identifying the institutional terminal; and
determining whether the calling party is entitled to use the institutional terminal,
wherein the communication is denied if the determining returns a negative result.
4. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises providing the called party with an option to prohibit any future calls from the calling party.
5. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises providing the called party with an option to prohibit future calls from a location of the calling party.
6. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises replaying a call origination message to the called party.
7. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data representative of telephone numbers.
8. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data representative of personal identities.
9. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating whether to record a communication from the calling party.
10. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating whether to record a communication to the called party.
11. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating whether to monitor a communication from the calling party.
12. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating whether to monitor the institutional terminal.
13. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating whether to monitor a communication to predetermined telephone numbers.
14. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating whether to monitor a communication to the called party.
15. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the account contains data indicating a called party to whom communications should be not recorded.
16. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises providing administrative control to initiate recording of the communication.
17. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises providing administrative control to initiate administrative monitoring of the communication.
18. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises providing administrative control to terminate the communication.
19. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises monitoring the communication for a fraud detection event.
20. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises storing, in the account, data representative of the communication.
21. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the method further comprises storing a keyword in the account.
22. A method according to claim 21 , wherein the method further comprises monitoring the communication for the keyword.
23. A method according to claim 2 , wherein the identifying comprises biometric voice verification, and wherein the biometric voice verification occurs continuously during the communication.
24. A method, provided by an institutional telephone system, of managing telephone activity between a calling party and a called party, wherein the calling party is an institutional party and the called party is a non-institutional party, the method comprising:
providing an account for the calling party, wherein the account comprises calling party entitlements, at least some entitlements based on the calling party's class;
creating an institutional communication connection with an institutional terminal following initiation by the calling party, wherein the institutional communication connection comprises an external communication request from the calling party, the communication request sufficient to establish communication between the calling party and the called party;
identifying the calling party;
analyzing the external communication request received from the calling party to determine its called party parameters;
comparing the called party parameters to the calling party entitlements to determine whether the calling party is entitled to communicate with the called party and denying the external communication request if the comparing returns a negative result;
determining whether the account is active and denying the external communication request if the determining returns a negative result;
digitizing a first sample of the calling party;
storing the first sample;
digitizing a second sample of the calling party from the communication;
storing the second sample; and
comparing the first sample to the second sample for verifying identification of
the calling party.
25. A method, provided by an institutional telephone system, of managing telephone activity between a calling party and a called party, wherein the calling party is an institutional party and the called party is a non-institutional party, the method comprising:
providing an account for the calling party wherein the account comprises calling party entitlements, at least some entitlements based on the calling party's class;
creating an institutional communication connection with an institutional terminal following initiation by the calling party, wherein the institutional communication connection comprises an external communication request from the calling party, the communication request sufficient to establish communication between the calling party and the called party;
identifying the calling party;
analyzing the external communication request received from the calling party to determine its called party parameters;
comparing the called party parameters to the calling party entitlements to determine whether the calling party is entitled to communicate with the called party and denying the external communication request if the comparing returns a negative result;
determining whether the account is active and denying the external communication request if the determining returns a negative result;
digitizing a first sample of the called party;
storing the first sample;
identifying the called party;
digitizing a second sample of the called party from the communication;
storing the second sample; and
comparing the first sample to the second sample second sample for verifying identification of the called party.
26. A method, provided by an institutional telephone system, of managing telephone activity between a calling party and a called party, wherein the calling party is an institutional party and the called party is a non-institutional party, the method comprising:
providing an account for the calling party, wherein the account comprises calling party entitlements, at least some entitlements based on the calling party's class;
creating an institutional communication connection with an institutional terminal following initiation by the calling party, wherein the institutional communication connection comprises an external communication request from the calling party the communication request sufficient to establish communication between the calling party and the called party;
identifying the calling party;
analyzing the external communication request received from the calling party to determine its called party parameters;
comparing the called party parameters to the calling party entitlements to determine whether the calling party is entitled to communicate with the called party and denying the external communication request if the comparing returns a negative result;
determining whether the account is active and denying the external communication request if the determining returns a negative result;
identifying the called party;
digitizing a first sample of the calling party;
storing the first sample;
digitizing a second sample of the called party;
storing the second sample;
digitizing a third sample of the communication;
storing the third sample; and
comparing the first sample and the second sample to the third sample.
27. A method according to claim 26 , wherein the comparing detects an unauthorized party to the communication.
28. A method, provided by an institutional telephone system, of managing telephone activity, between a calling party and a called party, wherein the calling party is an institutional party and the called party is a non-institutional party the method comprising
providing a plurality of institutional terminals, a plurality of telephone lines, an administrative database, and an administrative interface, wherein the database comprises an individual account for each calling party and wherein each account provides individual entitlements to the calling party;
placing a communication request to the called party from one of the institutional terminals by the calling party, wherein the placing comprises entering numeric data into one of the institutional terminals:
accepting the communication request;
identifying the calling party;
analyzing the communication request to determine parameters;
comparing the parameters with entitlements;
conditionally establishing communication between the called party and the calling party;
providing a digital recording buffer and a digital mass storage device;
monitoring the system for active calls; and
recording the active calls in the buffer.
29. A method according to claim 28 , wherein the recording is continuous.
30. A method according to claim 28 , wherein the method further comprises:
monitoring an active call for a fraud detection event;
storing the buffer contents in the mass storage device if the monitoring returns a positive result; and
recording the remainder of the active call in the mass storage device if the monitoring returns a positive result.
31. A system for managing institutional telephone activity between a calling party and a called party, wherein a calling party is an institutional party and a called party is a non-institutional party, comprising:
an interface component confirmed to accept an external communication request from a calling party, the communication request having at least one called party parameter, and the communication request sufficient to establish communication between the calling party and the called party;
a database storing a plurality of accounts associated with calling parties, each account storing permissible calling party parameters for each calling party, wherein at least some calling party parameters are based on the calling party's class; and
a screening component in communication with the interface component and the database, configured to read each external communication request, query the database for the permissible calling party parameters associated with the calling party and determine whether at least one called party parameter is a permissible calling party parameter and configured to determine whether the calling party has an active account, the screening component denying the calling party's external communication request if the active account determination returns a negative result, wherein one of the permissible calling party parameters is a telephone number and wherein the account includes a suspicious word associated with the calling party and the screening component is further configured to scan a digital sample for a suspicious word;
a communications component, in communication with the screening, component, and configured to process the communications request following determination by the screening component that the communication request contains permissible parameters; and
a digital conversion component configured to receive a voice sample from the calling party and convert the voice sample to a digital format, wherein sample in a buffer.
32. The system of claim 31 , wherein one of the permissible parameters is a telephone number.
33. The system of claim 31 , wherein the screening component is further configured to perform biometric voice identification on the sample generated by the digital conversion component and further configured to confirm an identity of the calling party based upon the results of the biometric voice identification.
34. The system of claim 31 , wherein the database stores the digital sample in a file associated with the caller account.