VOIP AND DIGITAL PHONE SERVICE MAY INTERFERE WITH YOUR SECURITY/LIFE SAFETY SYSTEM
We would like to inform you about the potential impact that new types of phone services may have on your security/life safety system. Commonly referred to as “VoIP” (Voice over Internet Protocol) and “digital telephone service,” these new phone options are rapidly growing in popularity. These technologies allow you to make telephone calls via a broadband connection instead of using a traditional, “landline” phone service. The benefits include enhanced features and lower costs compared to the traditional service. Typically, these new types of phone services replace your landline service.
It is important that you are aware that these new services can adversely affect your electronic security/life safety system.
In almost all cases, your security/life safety system relies on proper operation of the telephone line, and its associated special security wiring, to reliably communicate alarm signals to the central station. There are several important things to consider before making the decision to use VoIP or digital telephone service:
- With a self-installed VoIP service, such as Vonage or AT&T’s CallVantage, your alarm system may lose its connection to the telephone service, rendering the system unable to send alarm signals to the central station. VoIP technology may also cause your alarm signals to get scrambled as they are sent to the central station.
- With digital telephone phone services offered by your cable provider, your system may be unable to consistently and reliably send alarm signals to the central station. This technology may also cause your alarm signals to get scrambled as they are sent to the central station.
- In addition to the security system’s battery back-up equipment, VoIP and digital phone services may need additional battery back-up equipment to maintain communications in the event of a power failure.
Either way, there is significant risk that your security/life safety system will not be able to communicate an emergency signal to the central station.
We encourage you to check with us before making any changes to your existing telephone service. If you have already switched to VoIP or digital phone service, it is extremely important that you contact us now. We will arrange a service call to properly test your system and check the wiring.
For the utmost reliability, there are new security communications solutions available that use digital wireless transmission or the Internet to reliably send alarm signals to the central station. These services allow you to take maximum advantage of cost savings from VoIP or digital telephone services while maintaining, and even improving, the reliability of your security/life safety system. We would be happy to discuss these options with you.
If you have any questions, we encourage you to contact us.
