Whether plaintiff or defendant, call accounting software can help you be prepared for telephone abuse litigation. In litigation, the burden of proof may lie with the plaintiff, however whether you are the one initiating the litigation, or you are the recipient of legal action, it never hurts to adopt the Boy Scouts of America motto - Be prepared!

Having a call accounting system with its call detail records can provide real-time monitoring of call data, should your business land in court over telephone abuse litigation. Call detail records, both local and long distance, can be used for usage verification, billing reconciliation, network management and to monitor telephone usage to determine volume of phone usage, as well as abuse of your company's telephone system. CDR's are an asset in managing long distance telephone costs and aid in the planning for future telecommunications needs.

Types of telephone abuse issues that can affect any organization include obscene or sexual harassment calls, bomb threats, 911 calls, calls from employees to competitors, and possible incidents of toll fraud.

For toll fraud, the key is to regularly monitor and observe suspicious call patterns which can indicate a hacker's attempts to gain access to the switch, such as:

*Repeated incoming calls

*Long holding times

*Surges in phone use

*Calls after business hours

Call accounting software has long been associated with hotel industries or telecom companies as a means of cost allocation and telecom billing. The benefits and return on investment are many regardless of corporate industry. In this case, it would serve as a viable tool in tracking the information you will need to present in front of that intimidating judge.

Call accounting software can provide in real time, the needed proof that the call took place, when and how long it lasted, as well as other valuable data that can stop offenders in their tracks, and discredit the opposition in legal issues.