Received: by bu-cs.BU.EDU (5.58/4.7) id AA28708; Sun, 22 Jan 89 01:24:54 EST Message-Id: <8901220624.AA28708@bu-cs.BU.EDU> Date: Sun, 22 Jan 89 1:03:54 EST From: The Moderator Reply-To: TELECOM@bu-cs.BU.EDU Subject: TELECOM Digest V9 #24 To: TELECOM@bu-cs.bu.edu TELECOM Digest Sun, 22 Jan 89 1:03:54 EST Volume 9 : Issue 24 Today's Topics: Victims of Wrong Numbers Mousepruf 900 Tariff Application Area Code Numerical Listings Cellular Setup Re: Fraudulent use of 900 #'s Re: Supplementary Code Numbers ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 22 Jan 89 00:27:38 EST From: telecom@bu-cs.BU.EDU (TELECOM Moderator) To: telecom@bu-cs.bu.edu Subject: Victims of Wrong Numbers Pat Zsetenyi operates an interior design business in one of the south suburbs of Chicago. On the day she opened her business, she thought she had hit upon a gold mine. After going out for a few hours, she returned to her office to find the answering machine on her new number loaded with calls. "I was thrilled," said Zsetenyi. "It was my first day in business and I had all these messages on my answering machine already." Then she realized no one could be calling her yet, since no one knew the new number. Well then, whose calls *did* she have? When she played back the messages, there were dozens of calls for United Airlines, which has a reservations number that is almost the same as hers -- just two digits are transposed. At the time she did not know it, but she had joined an elite group of people, who through no fault of their own, have phone numbers easily mistaken for frequently dialed numbers. She says she gets anywhere from ten to dozens of wrong numbers per day. If the weather is bad or there is some incident at the airport, then the calls really start pouring in. She pointed out the most amazing part of the whole thing are the people who call and get her answering machine. They hear the whole outgoing message "Thank you for calling Zsetenyi's Decorating Den" and then they still proceed to leaving a message for United Airlines, asking to be "....called back when the reservations office is open...." "...one lady called back three days in a row, saying , 'Why won't you return my call? I need my tickets!'....I finally called her and told her she was never going to hear from United at the rate she she was going..." Area Code 312 is very rapidly filling up, which increases the odds that misdials will reach a working number. Because of the growing scarcity of numbers until 708 kicks in later this year, the period of time a disconnected number is held before being reassigned has been reduced from several months to a few weeks at most. In years past, 'notorious' numbers -- such as those belonging to call girls -- would be retired from service for YEARS after being disconnected. This is a luxury no longer available here. Hillary Anderson, a spokeswoman for Illinois Bell Telephone said she has the same problem with her home phone which happens to be very similar to the main switchboard number for W. W. Grainger Company. Ms. Anderson said that anyone can have their number changed if it bothers them, "...but yet, most people with easily mistaken phone numbers do not want to change them. It is not a matter of the fee involved. IBT charges $33 to change someone's phone number, but as a matter of good relations with our customers, we will waive the fee whenever someone is receiving an 'annoying amount' of wrong numbers. I can write off that charge from a customer's bill, but it seems like instead of being annoyed, those people seem to relish their odd distinction." About fifteen years ago, I had an office in downtown Chicago on one of the first ESS exchanges to open up here in the Chicago-Wabash office. My number was WEbster 9-4600. At the time, Sears Roebuck's national credit card office was also downtown. Unlike me with two lines on a desk phone, Sears then had a big old fashioned *five position* cord board with the lead number in their hunt group being WAbash 2-4600. Now 939 and 922 are not that similar, but one day a new AT&T toll switcher opened on Canal Street. In a simple accident, 922 was incorrectly translated by that office to 939....need I say more? For two days straight, I was flooded with calls for Sears' credit department. It was fun while it lasted. On complaining I was told I should change my number. I told them that number had been in service for 13 years and would not get changed. "So what," said the service rep. "Sears has had WAbash 2-4600 for *sixty five years* and they probably won't change theirs either!" Patrick Townson ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 21 Jan 89 06:45:52 PST From: ll-xn!ucsd!pro-mars.cts.com!bill (Bill Cerny) To: crash!telecom-request Subject: Mousepruf 900 Tariff Application "On April 1, 1988, Pacific [Bell] filed Application No. 88-04-004 wherein it requested that the [Ca Public Utilities] Commission authorize Pacific to offer a new service, Information Calling Services (900 ICS)." - Ammendment to Application, filed Jun 2, 88 Selected extracts from this filing: 9.5.4.A.1 Three selective blocking options are available to the residential customer: Option 1 Option 2 Option 3 -------- -------- -------- 976 976 900-303 900-844 900-505 900-505 900-303 900-303 900-844 is general audience - "Resource Network" programs 900-505 is general audience - "Open Forum" [talk] programs 900-303 is adult services with both "Open Forum" and "Resource Network" programs. 9.5.3.D.1.c Transport and billing of service to IP/Sponsor (1) Billing, per call: $.05 1st Min Addl Mins (2) Transport - Resource Network ------- --------- per call, day period (8-5) $.20 $.09 per call, night period $.19 $.06 (3) Transport - Open Forum, per call $.20 $.09 9.5.3.A.2 Definitions FREE TRIAL OPTION - A period not to exceed 30 days during which no Information Charges for a selected Resource Network Program will be billed to a Subscriber. [an IP may have up to four "Free Trials" during one calenday year] NON-PEAK INFORMATION CHARGE - Resource Network IP's may establish non-peak charges. If this option is selected, non-peak Information Charges will apply to the lower of two IP selected rate periods, Monday-Friday, and to weekends and Utility holidays. Lotsa goodies, too many to list, and they make me drool. I wish I could switch my 976 program to 900; but the CPUC is allowing every/any-body state their druthers, especially those nauseating "consumer advocate" groups. The proposed 900 service is superior (from an IP's viewpoint) to that currently offered by AT&T, Telesphere, et. al. But my grandchildren may be old men before Pac*Bell is allowed to offer it (surprise! the Pac*Bell network is already routing 900 calls; call one of the 3 prefixes and note the disconnect recording comes from the same c.o. that switches 976 calls!) Get a copy of the application: dial 811-4976 (in Ca only; folks outside of Ca just wish they weren't 8-) ) -- Bill ARPA: crash!pro-mars!bill@nosc.mil (as seen on TV) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Jan 89 12:36:22 EST From: Alexander Dupuy To: cmoore@BRL.MIL Cc: telecom@bu-cs.bu.edu Subject: Area Code Numerical Listings Date: Wed, 18 Jan 89 17:10:59 EST From: Carl Moore (VLD/VMB) You included 708 in Illinois. When does that take effect? "conventional" area code format apparently means N0X/N1X except N00,N10,N11, right? The 708 changes were something I read about in Telecom digest. I think they will take place in spring '89 (correct me if I'm wrong, Patrick). Yes, at least for now, N0X/N1X covers all "conventional" area codes. @alex [Moderator's Note: 708 gets assigned to new subscribers starting later this year. November 9 is the official starting date. The split will be official shortly thereafter. Very little grace period given; unlike NYC's 212/718. PT] ------------------------------ To: comp-dcom-telecom@uunet.UU.NET From: boottrax@csd4.milw.wisc.edu (Perry Victor Lea) Subject: Cellular Setup Date: 21 Jan 89 06:53:42 GMT Question: How is phase shifting actually involved in communications between the mobile unit and the switching office ? Question: Is it possible to access cellular setup channels and place fraudulent call with a ham radio? Thanks for your help .. Perry Reply here on this newsgroup or e-mail to boottrax@csd4.milw.wisc.edu (arpanet) ------------------------------ To: telecom@bu-cs.bu.edu From: westmark!dave@rutgers.edu (Dave Levenson) Subject: Re: Fraudulent use of 900 #'s Date: 21 Jan 89 13:44:34 GMT In article , kwc@naucse writes: > Now exactly who do you think ends up paying for telephone fraud???? > The telephone company. Let's not forget who _really_ pays for telephone fraud! The telephone company recovers its costs by collecting money from you and me and everybody else who pays a telephone bill, don't they? -- Dave Levenson Westmark, Inc. The Man in the Mooney Warren, NJ USA {rutgers | att}!westmark!dave ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 20 Jan 89 21:54:38 PST From: "Eric P. Scott" Subject: Re: Supplementary Code Numbers To: telecom@bu-cs.bu.edu In California, 811-XXXX numbers provide toll-free access to various Pacific Bell offices. My recollection has it that the tariff allows inter-LATA calls to be handled by PacBell rather than an IEC (but must terminate within the organization, of course). 211 is reserved for COPT (Customer-Owned Pay Telephone, CPUC's version of the FCC's COCOT) refunds. -=EPS=- ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest *********************