Patent ID: 7426381

Claim:
A method of detecting and billing a customer communication between a customer access device and a sewer of a network provider, the customer communication being generated at the customer access device on behalf of a customer of the network provider and transmitted using a secure network, the method comprising: capturing, by a billing agent at the customer access device, each customer communication to be transmitted from the customer access device, by routing each customer communication through the billing agent; encrypting the customer communication; determining billing information about the communication before encrypting, wherein the billing information is based on access to the secure network through the network provider; transmitting, from the access device, the billing information to a billing system; receiving, at the billing system associated with the network provider, the billing information from the access device communicating on the network, the billing information including communication information for at least one communication transmitted from the access device; and billing the customer of the network provider based at least in part on the billing information.