🚀 go-pugleaf

RetroBBS NetNews Server

Inspired by RockSolid Light RIP Retro Guy

Article View: mod.telecom
Article #390

Legalalities Re: Blue Boxes

#390
From: Douglas Humphrey
Date: Tue, 22 Jul 1986 19:33
27 lines
1991 bytes
Concerning Blue Boxes, and what is illegal, it depends upon the laws of 
the State that you are in. In most states, they can get you for 
'possession of a device capable of defrauding the phone company' which 
is a literal quote from some summons papers I have here from a time
when a friend in Virginia got nailed. No need to show intent because the
device has only one obvious purpose and capability which is defrauding
the phone company. Possession of it is defacto evidence of intent (in
the eyes of the courts, anyway).

Blue boxes still work very well, but it is getting to be a game of 
Find The MF Trunk, since so much of the long distance facilities are
onto CCIS and other out-of-band signaling methods. Still, there are a 
lot of trunks out there, and many of them will do the 'right thing'
when whistled at. Rumor has it that there are places where trunks
cross over into Canada which have a set of MF translaters on them 
to let the CCIS gear talk inband to some older MF gear up north,
allowing the 2600 to go to the border unseen (who looks for it on
CCIS trunks ?) but have the desired effect just over the border. 
From there it would be possible to hit international senders and come
back into the US, or go wherever else the sender can take you.

Me ? No. Haven't touched the stuff in years. Too risky by half.


Shamefully paying for all my long distance.....

Doug
Technical Details
Message-ID: <8607230727.AA20040@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>
Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!utzoo!mnetor!seismo!lll-crg!mordor!sri-spam!nike!ucbcad!ucbvax!ENEEVAX.UMD.EDU!deh

Show Full Headers
Complete Article Headers
Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!utzoo!mnetor!seismo!lll-crg!mordor!sri-spam!nike!ucbcad!ucbvax!ENEEVAX.UMD.EDU!deh
From: deh@ENEEVAX.UMD.EDU (Douglas Humphrey)
Newsgroups: mod.telecom
Subject: Legalalities Re: Blue Boxes
Message-ID: <8607230727.AA20040@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>
Date: Tue, 22-Jul-86 15:33:57 EDT
Article-I.D.: ucbvax.8607230727.AA20040
Posted: Tue Jul 22 15:33:57 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 24-Jul-86 02:43:17 EDT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The ARPA Internet
Lines: 27
Approved: telecom@xx.lcs.mit.edu