Tapping The VoIP: Big Google Is Listening?

I just caught this discussion thread at VoIPSec about Google considering a new way to target ads: turn on the microphone on your PC, eavesdrop at background sounds (possibly TV), parse the info, and generate a contextual ad on the web page you are surfing. This isn’t actually news, but it’s the first I’ve seen anyone discussing it in possibly the vein of eavesdropping, as a proxy for the government. Anyone have a copy of the Jerky Boys telephone prank calls handy? (Has anyone been naughty and started doing VoIP prank calls?)

And you were worried about the government, particularly the CIA or their counterparts, tapping your VoIP calls. While it’s true that in the old days of manual line switching, operators would listen in on calls (they had to?), I doubt anyone’s sitting around filing their nails and chewing gum, eavesdropping to the sounds from your PC’s microphone.