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The Telecom Digest for October 12, 2010
Volume 29 : Issue 274 : "text" Format

Messages in this Issue:

Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"?(Gary)
Re: Delivery of ANI on a non-IN WATS call?(Sam Spade)
What we're driving at(Monty Solomon)
National Cyber Security Awareness Month 2010: Stop. Think. Connect. (Monty Solomon)
Generic Question About ANI(Sam Spade)
Re: Generic Question About ANI(markjcuccia)
What is a "female-specific mobile handset"?(Regina_R_Monaco)
Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"?(John Levine)
Re: Apple takes steps to nip iPhone 4 scalping in bud (John Levine)
Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? (Garrett Wollman)
Re: History--old MIT dial-up directory(Robert Bonomi)
Re: History--old MIT dial-up directory(Lisa or Jeff)
Re: four-prong jack (was History--old MIT dial-up directory) (Joseph Singer)
Increasing attacks on VoIP systems means increased billing charges (Thad Floryan)
Re: A Simple Swipe on a Phone, and You're Paid(Wes Leatherock)
Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? (Michael D. Sullivan)
New Web Code Draws Concern Over Risks to Privacy(Monty Solomon)
Bling (cellphone payment scheme) comes to campus(Thad Floryan)
Mandatory hard-wired phone? (was Re: History--old MIT dial-up directory) (jsw)
Apple takes steps to nip iPhone 4 scalping in budApple takes steps to nip iPhone 4 scalping in bud (Joseph Singer)
Comcast's NBC Deal Said to Face Possible U.S. Arbitration Demand (Neal McLain)
Finding Your Way Through the Mall or the Airport, With a Cellphone Map (Monty Solomon)
The Zombie Network: Beware 'Free Public WiFi'(Thad Floryan)
Uptick in do-not-call violations(Jim Haynes)


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Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 09:42:58 -0400 From: "Gary" <bogus-email@hotmail.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? Message-ID: <i8sftb$4f3$1@news.eternal-september.org> "John Mayson" <john@mayson.us> wrote in message news:AANLkTinmX7wi3+xcyXFd9mi6z162h3HeDJvi9NX7um1L@mail.gmail.com... > > I'm scratching my head wondering why this is necessarily an issue. > I'm willing to bet in the US more men than women own hammers and > drills while more women own sewing machines and knitting needles. You can buy hand tools specifically made for women. Smaller handles, lighter weights, and pink grips (so the men in their lives won't borrow them). I suppose the same could be done for cell phones - buttons that work with long nails, female favorite colors, an on screen mirror function with a forward facing camera, easily triggered piercing alarm in case of attack, e.t.c. -Gary
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 13:21:06 -0700 From: Sam Spade <sam@coldmail.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Delivery of ANI on a non-IN WATS call? Message-ID: <1vydnQgvTJ6uvS_RnZ2dnUVZ_tydnZ2d@giganews.com> Adam H. Kerman wrote: > Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net> wrote: > > >>Aren't you confusing "PBX" with "Centrex-CO"? > > > You know, Bill, you insisted on having this discussion in private email, > then you posted your followup anyway after I already explained to you > that I was doing no such thing. > > Please don't accuse me of nonsense completely out of left field. > It's Cox Telephone of California, a CLEC, which operates a DMS-500 and serves its subscribers via it regional cable system. It would be subject to the same rules for honoring the CPN privacy flag that apply to AT&T, Verizon, et al, for intra-state directly number calls within California. I don't see where ANI would be any part of this for a calling party billable call.
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 22:22:04 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: What we're driving at Message-ID: <p062408eac8d8251316ab@[192.168.180.244]> What we're driving at 10/09/2010 12:00:00 PM Larry and Sergey founded Google because they wanted to help solve really big problems using technology. And one of the big problems we're working on today is car safety and efficiency. Our goal is to help prevent traffic accidents, free up people's time and reduce carbon emissions by fundamentally changing car use. So we have developed technology for cars that can drive themselves. Our automated cars, manned by trained operators, just drove from our Mountain View campus to our Santa Monica office and on to Hollywood Boulevard. They've driven down Lombard Street, crossed the Golden Gate bridge, navigated the Pacific Coast Highway, and even made it all the way around Lake Tahoe. All in all, our self-driving cars have logged over 140,000 miles. We think this is a first in robotics research. Our automated cars use video cameras, radar sensors and a laser range finder to "see" other traffic, as well as detailed maps (which we collect using manually driven vehicles) to navigate the road ahead. This is all made possible by Google's data centers, which can process the enormous amounts of information gathered by our cars when mapping their terrain. ... http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/what-were-driving-at.html
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 22:25:08 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: National Cyber Security Awareness Month 2010: Stop. Think. Connect. Message-ID: <p062408ebc8d825a037b2@[192.168.180.244]> National Cyber Security Awareness Month 2010: Stop. Think. Connect. 10/04/2010 01:31:00 PM Governments, industry and everyday people have been abuzz this year about online security to a larger extent than ever before. People are talking about their information, how they share it with others and how they secure it. With more information moving online, and with cyber attacks on the rise, we think it's important that we keep the conversation about security flowing. Google has renewed its commitment to security this year and has pushed industry boundaries to help people better protect their information in new ways. Here are just a few examples: We became the first major email provider to offer default HTTPS encryption for the entire email session, and we introduced an encrypted search option for Google.com. We designed a new system to make Google Accounts more secure, and added suspicious activity detection for our users. Google Apps became the first suite of cloud computing applications to receive Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) certification from the U.S. government. We also published new security products, tools and research to help web developers and network administrators make the rest of the web more secure. ... http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/national-cyber-security-awareness-month.html http://safetyandsecuritymessaging.org/
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 01:08:25 -0700 From: Sam Spade <sam@coldmail.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Generic Question About ANI Message-ID: <77-dnaKpF55mWC_RnZ2dnUVZ_tidnZ2d@giganews.com> For you network gurus: Should the transmission of ANI by my originating Class 5 switch be limited to inwats numbers, 900 numbers, and E911 trunks? If I am dialing an ordinary directory number that is billable to me shouldn't my ANI not be transmitted?
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 13:59:16 -0700 (PDT) From: markjcuccia@yahoo.com To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Generic Question About ANI Message-ID: <79535b91-3b93-49c9-aee9-6b7759ccaf70@a36g2000yqc.googlegroups.com> On Oct 11, 3:08 am, Sam Spade wrote: > For you network gurus: should the transmission of ANI by my originating > Class 5 switch be limited to inwats numbers, 900 numbers, and E911 > trunks? If I am dialing an ordinary directory number that is billable to me > shouldn't my ANI not be transmitted? ANI is still sent-forward to the telco or IXC that is billing the call to you, to their tandem with CAMA, unless the billing recording is being done at the originating switch (which "could" be the case on intra-LATA toll calls handled by that originating telco and not some IXC. But I agree that ANI should NOT be sent forward to "just anyone" further downstream. Same with CID info if you dialed a *67/1167 prefix to "flag" the number as "private" to the far-end. Mark J. Cuccia markjcuccia at yahoo dot com
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 09:06:56 -0400 From: Regina_R_Monaco <remonaco@sonic.net> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? Message-ID: <364A956D-7F5C-4DAE-B412-E5F6507B3B86@sonic.net> John Mayson wrote: > I'm scratching my head wondering why this is necessarily an issue. > I'm willing to bet in the US more men than women own hammers and > drills while more women own sewing machines and knitting needles. > > Do women need, or even want, mobile phones in these countries? > > What percentage of the overall population owns mobiles? If only a > small fraction own them, the women being 23% less likely isn't the > real story. > > Sounds like a classic case of trying to apply western political > correctness where it really doesn't apply. I'd be more concerned > about getting good health care for these women. Forget mobile phones. This does seem particularly unecessary, and a brief search of "female- specific handset cel phone" shows dozens of articles on pink handsets, Samsung's "E500 female phone with Mobile Beauty Box" (I wish I were kidding on that but alas, it's real) and other handsets designed to looki cute, or colorful, or bejeweled. If this is what was meant as a concern for handsets for women in third-world countries, I have to agree it's marketing gone amuck. But I did read an article awhile back on women in third world countries starting micro-businesses with their cel phones. Women - not the men - would purchase a cel phone, then everyone in the village, and indeed within reasonable travleing distance, would come to use that woman's phone, paying her per call. This strategy was reported as successful for lifting many women in these poor countries out of poverty a bit. So possibly these "female-specific handsets" are ways to make the phone easier to share, or easier for the customers to use, so that this sort of micro-business can thrive. Just a thought. As an aside, to answer John's question, do women even need cel phones in these countries? - IMHO, everyone needs access to communication, and handsets to women (hopefully not necessarily pink or bejeweled!!) would certainly be a step on the road to equality in these countries, if it gives women there a bit more of a voice than they already possess. -Regina
Date: 10 Oct 2010 17:43:17 -0000 From: John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? Message-ID: <20101010174317.60747.qmail@joyce.lan> >Do women need, or even want, mobile phones in these countries? I would think so. Search for "telephone ladies" and you will find lots of stories about poor women in south Asia who make a business of selling mobile phone service by the call, and what a big difference it can make to small farmers, e.g.: Mohammed Abul Kashem runs a fish farm of 10 man-made ponds. He uses the phone service to order food and other supplies from the capital. "If the phone wasn't here then I'd have to travel to Dhaka," he says. "It's a very long and unpleasant journey. "Now I can use the phone I am saving time and it makes my business more competitive." R's, John
Date: 10 Oct 2010 17:45:37 -0000 From: John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: Apple takes steps to nip iPhone 4 scalping in bud Message-ID: <20101010174537.61349.qmail@joyce.lan> In article <4CB1B46D.7010603@thadlabs.com> you write: >Hmmm, China Telecom uses CDMA for their cellphones, so what >kind of iPhone 4s are being sold in China? Since their current network partner is China Unicom, not China Telecom, I expect it's the same GSM phone they sell everywhere else.
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 16:51:00 +0000 (UTC) From: wollman@bimajority.org (Garrett Wollman) To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? Message-ID: <i8sqtk$1v5r$1@grapevine.csail.mit.edu> In article <AANLkTinmX7wi3+xcyXFd9mi6z162h3HeDJvi9NX7um1L@mail.gmail.com>, John Mayson <john@mayson.us> wrote: >Do women need, or even want, mobile phones in these countries? Given that they don't have access to landline phones in those countries, yes. >Sounds like a classic case of trying to apply western political >correctness where it really doesn't apply. I'd be more concerned >about getting good health care for these women. Forget mobile phones. The phone may be an important part of the health-care delivery system, particularly for the rural poor who may not be able to travel to a clinic. -GAWollman -- Garrett A. Wollman | What intellectual phenomenon can be older, or more oft wollman@bimajority.org| repeated, than the story of a large research program Opinions not shared by| that impaled itself upon a false central assumption my employers. | accepted by all practitioners? - S.J. Gould, 1993
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 23:04:43 -0500 From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi) To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: History--old MIT dial-up directory Message-ID: <efCdncuKSoNGES_RnZ2dnUVZ_rydnZ2d@posted.nuvoxcommunications> In article <jNadnVrDZ4TCNC3RnZ2dnUVZ_oednZ2d@giganews.com>, Sam Spade <sam@coldmail.com> wrote: > >Prior to that the old jacks were available for quite a few years as an >option in residential service for, of course, a monthly fee. And, at >least one telephone set had to be hard wired. Not true in NW Bell territory (Iowa.) Until the mid 1960s, we never had a hard-wired phone in the house, only pluggable ones. And there was only a one-time fee for a jack install. As part of a major remodeling we did in 1964, we ended up with a "sort-of" hard-wired phone. an early 'panel phone' (dial variety, not touch-tone), built into the wall of the kitchen. 'Inside the box' in the wall that the phone mounted in, there was a standard 4-prong jack, and a plug on a wire going to the 'innards'. It was easier for the telco to swap out, that way, if/when repair was needed. At the time it was put in, it was the only residential installation of that variety of phone in the entire state, if not all of NW Bell. For 10 years, it was the only one of it's type anywhere in the metro area. Then a new motel went up (1974-5), just out of downtown, and used the same kind of instrument in, at least, all their public spaces. (Handy design, the handset cord was on a retractor/reel inside the wall, so no dangling cord to get in the way of anything.) We did_ have a loud ring-only device (mounted on the outside of the house) that was hard-wired. Maybe that 'counted' as fulfilling the requirement. Beyond that, we had a all of two phones. But being 'pluggable', and with several jacks, (living room, master bedroom, dining-room (opposite end of the house from the LR), and basement, the phone just 'migrated' to where the people were. >"Ernestine" in Kansas City explained to me why one instrument had to be >hard wired and it could not have a ringer cut-off. All our instruments, including the outside ringer, had full cut-off. There was a detent at 'minimum volume', to discourage turning it completely off, but they did go off, with only a little persuasion.
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 12:35:30 -0700 (PDT) From: Lisa or Jeff <hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: History--old MIT dial-up directory Message-ID: <df18e7e4-e7c0-4441-be0d-5775ba9b6e32@e14g2000yqe.googlegroups.com> On Oct 11, 12:04 am, bon...@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi) wrote: > As part of a major remodeling > we did in 1964, we ended up with a "sort-of" hard-wired phone. an early > 'panel phone' (dial variety, not touch-tone), built into the wall of the > kitchen. Forgot about panel phones. Apparently they weren't a very popular option; I think far more people went for Trimline or Princess sets. Were there any other residential options that weren't too successful? At a worksite they had the Bell Chime, set on doorbell, to ring for emergency calls. I don't think too many residences got the Bell Chime. Some people did get the outdoor loud extension ringer. I know of someone who still has one in service that they'd like to get rid of, but the ringer isn't in an easily accessible spot (mounted high up). Neighbors don't like it. A local shopping mall had payphones behind a panel that looked very modern (1965). But I found out there were just conventional three slot payphones jerry-rigged to be flush with the panel. Later said mall had one Touch Tone 3-slot pay phone, located in an out of the way place. As an aside, that was an early covered mall but has since been "opened" and converted into a plain strip shopping center. By the way, at the Fort Washington Interchange of the Penna Tpk there are still pay phones in booths off to the side of the toll gates.
Date: Sat, 9 Oct 2010 10:37:48 -0700 (PDT) From: Joseph Singer <joeofseattle@yahoo.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: four-prong jack (was History--old MIT dial-up directory) Message-ID: <142683.23276.qm@web52705.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Thu, 7 Oct 2010 10:35:49 -0700 (PDT)<hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com> wrote: > [This was] The old style 4 prong jack. It had a more modern > appearance, both jack and plug being white and round. In a few > years it would be replaced by the mini jack (1977?) still used > today. Actually, a square four-prong jack with two "ears" and rounded corners predated that by many years. The rounded plug with the rounded jack to match only came ca. 1970 or so. The "pinch plug" and modular jack started to show up ca. 1975 IIRC. My thinking is that the Bell System knew their time was up being the only provider of CPE and they developed the pinch plug and "RJ" series jacks partly for that reason.
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 07:09:48 -0700 From: Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Increasing attacks on VoIP systems means increased billing charges Message-ID: <4CB31AAC.9090709@thadlabs.com> Though most of this appears to be happening in Australia, the information from SANS suggests the problem is more widespread and not being reported publicly. A recommended tool, SIPVicious, is mentioned by SANS and available at the URL cited at the end of this posting. http://www.zdnet.com.au/thousands-lost-in-rising-voip-attacks-339306478.htm " " Australian network companies have told of clients receiving " phone bills including $100,000 worth of unauthorised calls " placed over compromised VoIP servers. Smaller attacks have " netted criminals tens of thousands of dollars worth of calls. " " A Perth business was hit with a $120,000 bill after hackers " exploited its VoIP server to place some 11,000 calls over 46 " hours last year. " " VoIP networks are a cash cow for criminals who can earn money " from unscrupulous telecommunications carriers profiting from " calls placed over victim's networks or to ramp up calls to " premium numbers. " " The genesis of the practise dates back some two decades when " phreakers busted into phone companies to make free calls. " VoIP attacks are now an established practice but victims are " still easy pickings for criminals. " " Local network providers and the SANs Institute have reported " recent spikes in Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) scanning " - a process to identify poorly configured VoIP systems - and " brute-force attacks against publicly-accessible SIP systems, " notably on UDP port 5060. " " Neural Networks noticed two VoIP attacks that left customers " with thousand-dollar phone bills over a Sunday night after " weak client passwords were exploited. Calls had originated " and terminated in three different countries. " [...] also http://www.zdnet.com.au/voip-hackers-strike-perth-business-339294515.htm " " A hacker recently obtained unauthorised access to the IP " telephony (VoIP) system of a Perth business, making 11,000 " calls costing over $120,000, according to the Western " Australian police. " " The calls were made over a period of 46 hours, the police " said, and the business only became aware of the imposition " when it received an invoice from its service provider. " " Thieves have always targeted PBX systems by finding numbers " used for remote calling - for mobile employees or those " requiring international call access outside of business " hours - to make calls at the company's expense. " " This has in the past been exploited for uses such as routing " calls made on cheap international phone cards, according to " Pure Hacking senior security consultant Chris Gatford. " [...] and http://isc.sans.edu/diary.html?storyid=9193 " " We observed an increase on UDP connections that use UDP " port 5060. This port is typically used for VoIP connections " using the SIP protocol. The activity is indicative of " attempts to locate weakly-configured IP PBX system, " probably to brute-force SIP passwords. Once the attacker " has access to the account, they may use it to make or " resell unauthorized calls. The attacker may also use " the access to conduct a voice phishing (vishing) campaign. " " We observed a similar up-tick a few months ago. At the " time, the activity was attributed to SIP brute-forcing " that probably originated from systems running in Amazon's " EC2 cloud. " " As described on the Digium blog, publicly-accessible SIP " systems are seeing large numbers of brute-force attacks. " Systems with weak SIP credentials will be compromised, " similarly to how email accounts can be compromised by " guessing the credentials "The significant difference is " that when someone takes over a SIP platform to make " outbound calls, there is usually a direct monetary cost, " which gets people's attention very quickly." " " One way to review your SIP exposure is to use the free " SIPVicious toolkit. Interestingly, SIPVicious now " includes a tool for crashing unauthorized SIPVicious scans. " [...] SIPVicious is available here: http://code.google.com/p/sipvicious/
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 20:34:35 EDT From: Wes Leatherock <Wesrock@aol.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: A Simple Swipe on a Phone, and You're Paid Message-ID: <1067b2.33d20a29.39e3b59b@aol.com> In a message dated 10/9/2010 12:47:56 PM Central Daylight Time, dcstar@myrealbox.com writes: > The current paradigm here is that if you haven't done something > stupid like write/keep your card PIN anywhere near your card then > any fraudulent transaction isn't your problem. What happens with a > card or phone that is flashed at a reader to do a transaction is > anybody's guess. > Will card companies wear any fraud incurred by stolen phones/cards > where there is no need for additional authentication, or will this > end up as another nasty new surprise for users of this technology? For several years 7-Eleven stores in the metropolitan Oklahoma City area have posted on the gas pump the authorization limits for each card company for transactions without a signature or PIN. More recently drug stores have stopped asking for signatures on a charge below a certain amoungt. At Walgreen's it's $25. If your card company on its web site shows "pending transactions" you'll find a $1.00 pending charge at any gas station at the pump, which goes away when the full charge is posted a day or two later. Also a PayPal payment the same way. I assume this assures the the card is for a valid account and will be honored up to the limit by each card company. Wes Leatherock wesrock@aol.com wleathus@yahoo.com
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 2010 23:03:06 -0400 From: "Michael D. Sullivan" <mds@camsul.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Re: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? Message-ID: <AANLkTi=5wX6Gsn1uxi==7spg0YUgTiT2CSyGpZYk5yNj@mail.gmail.com> > Date: Sat, 09 Oct 2010 20:51:30 -0700 > From: Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com> > To: redacted@invalid.telecom-digest.org. > Subject: What is a "female-specific mobile handset"? > Message-ID: <4CB13842.4020907@thadlabs.com> > > I was catching up on some news of the past week and came upon > an interesting article at the BBC entitled "Initiative aims to > supply millions of mobiles to women" at this URL: > > http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-11492427 > [snip] > > I'm still scratching my head trying to understand what would be a > female-specific handset without being risqué. :-) > > Anyone have any ideas? Just curious. Based on Motorola's past RAZR offerings, the phone needs to be pink, ridiculous as that sounds. But seriously, there may be issues in third world countries regarding womens' vs. mens' literacy, religious or cultural matters affecting the sexes, or other issues that may require different emphases in a handset designed for women in a particular country. -- Michael D. Sullivan Bethesda, MD
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 10:52:17 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: New Web Code Draws Concern Over Risks to Privacy Message-ID: <p062408edc8d8d4bb6467@[192.168.180.244]> New Web Code Draws Concern Over Risks to Privacy By TANZINA VEGA October 10, 2010 Worries over Internet privacy have spurred lawsuits, conspiracy theories and consumer anxiety as marketers and others invent new ways to track computer users on the Internet. But the alarmists have not seen anything yet. In the next few years, a powerful new suite of capabilities will become available to Web developers that could give marketers and advertisers access to many more details about computer users' online activities. Nearly everyone who uses the Internet will face the privacy risks that come with those capabilities, which are an integral part of the Web language that will soon power the Internet: HTML 5. The new Web code, the fifth version of Hypertext Markup Language used to create Web pages, is already in limited use, and it promises to usher in a new era of Internet browsing within the next few years. It will make it easier for users to view multimedia content without downloading extra software; check e-mail offline; or find a favorite restaurant or shop on a smartphone. ... http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/11/business/media/11privacy.html
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 11:23:17 -0700 From: Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Bling (cellphone payment scheme) comes to campus Message-ID: <4CB35615.2000402@thadlabs.com> Looks like payment via waving a cellphone with proximity chip has arrived in Silicon Valley. http://www.stanforddaily.com/2010/10/11/bling-comes-to-campus/ "What's that thing on your phone?" That's a question becoming more common on campus since Bling, a new payment method that uses a proximity chip stuck onto users' cell phones, expanded into Palo Alto and began its push among Stanford students at the beginning of the school year. Bling tags are meant to function as more efficient and safe debit cards. To complete a transaction, a user touches a Bling tag, which he or she sticks on the back of a cell phone, to a pad provided by a retailer. The tag eliminates PIN numbers and signatures, and is about one-eighth the size of a credit or debit card. The tap withdraws funds from a user's PayPal account, which can be connected online. "It's about adding a small amount of convenience," said Bling user Drew Padley '10. The convenience also extends to retailers. Fraiche employee Annalisa Likens said she has seen Bling drive consumers to the Stanford campus Fraiche location because they want to pay with the tag. She uses the payment method herself. Setting up a tag involves entering a mobile phone number upon completing the first transaction, and after setup, every purchase instantly sends a text message alert to the linked phone, an added feature for bookkeeping and security. Several Bling users said a big selling point of the tag was the incorporation with a cell phone. "Someday I'll really want something and only have my phone," said Evan McDonald '11. Other users said that a cell phone is much more difficult to lose than a credit card or wallet. Some retailers offer a program Bling Nation spokesman Matthew Murphy described as a "digital punch card," wherein the text alerts offer incentive programs for frequent shoppers at a given venue. For example, Stanford CoHo offers 10 percent off every seventh purchase made with a Bling tag. One concern students voiced about the Bling tags is the seemingly easy theft of such small objects, especially because Bling tags are identical aside from a nearly invisible number indented near the bottom. However, Murphy believes that Bling Nation's security features offset this problem. "There is no information stored on a Bling tag whatsoever," Murphy said, comparing Bling tags with debit cards. "You also realize you lose your cell phone before you realize you lose your wallet." Murphy said the company is expanding from Palo Alto to San Jose, with a particular focus on expanding at Stanford. Although some students admitted they only accepted the Bling tag because of the $10 incentive, those who adopted it as their primary method of payment have largely been pleased. "I use [the Bling tag] every place that has it," Likens said. "It's a lot easier, because I'm pretty forgetful and forget money." "It's definitely a trendy way to pay," said Bryan Yoo '10.
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 13:42:21 -0500 (CDT) From: jsw <jsw@ivgate.omahug.org> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Mandatory hard-wired phone? (was Re: History--old MIT dial-up directory) Message-ID: <201010111842.o9BIgLxm083426@ivgate.omahug.org> >And, at least one telephone set had to be hard wired. I very distinctly remember that my grandmother's apartment had one and only one telephone set, a rotary black 500, and two four-prong jacks, one in the bedroom and the other in the dining area. Yes, it was very possible to have no live sets and no ringers on the line. She did this occasionally when she did not want to be bothered. This would have been ca. late 1950s, genuine Ma Bell installation. >"If too many people have all the bells in their house >turned off, then the unanswered calls would pile up >and overload our carefully engineered system." Yeah, right !! No different than a ring-no-answer situation when nobody is around to answer it.
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 12:39:27 -0700 (PDT) From: Joseph Singer <joeofseattle@yahoo.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Apple takes steps to nip iPhone 4 scalping in budApple takes steps to nip iPhone 4 scalping in bud Message-ID: <325866.2269.qm@web52706.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Sun, 10 Oct 2010 05:41:17 -0700 Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com> wrote: <<Hmmm, China Telecom uses CDMA for their cellphones, so what kind of iPhone 4s are being sold in China?>> China Mobile and China Unicom both use GSM and in fact are the largest GSM operators in the world. I don't know the stats on China Telecom.
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 14:48:12 -0500 From: Neal McLain <nmclain@annsgarden.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Comcast's NBC Deal Said to Face Possible U.S. Arbitration Demand Message-ID: <4CB369FC.8030306@annsgarden.com> By Todd Shields - Bloomberg - Oct 8, 2010 | Comcast Corp. may be required to accept arbitration in | disputes over programming sales in order to win approval | of its merger with General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal, | said two people involved in talks with regulators. | | Justice Department and Federal Communications Commission | officials are weighing arbitration as a condition to help | cable companies and satellite rivals such as DirecTV | negotiate with Comcast for programs, said the people, who | spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions | are private. Continued at http://tinyurl.com/2d8luof Back in December 2009, I wrote: > Now that Comcast owns NBC (or will, if the government > doesn't block it), one can hope that Comcast will try to > rein in the retransmission fees imposed by its O&O NBC > and Telemundo stations. But if so, they aren't talking > about it. I haven't seen anything about it in the trade > press. To which John Levine wrote: > Why would they do that? The higher the consent fees, the > more money all the other cable systems will have to pay > Comcast. I responded: > As I said, "one can hope..." But maybe that's too much > to hope. I then cited four possible reasons: - It's just possible that some other MSO (e.g. Time Warner) might try to buy another broadcast network (e.g. CBS) one of these days. If Brian Roberts is thinking ahead (which he surely must be), he doesn't want to screw Time Warner. - As the largest cable company in the country, Comcast dominates the industry. But it also supports the industry by taking a leading role in negotiations with broadcasters, government agencies, and other organizations. It has enough problems dealing with all of these outside parties without alienating the rest of the cable industry. - For years, the cable industry (including Comcast) has been blaming rising cable rates on programmers and broadcasters. Certain members of Congress (notably Senator Markey of Massachusetts) have noted that some cable TV companies (including Comcast) also own non- broadcast programming. The question arises: "why are you complaining about rates if you own the programming." Comcast has enough problems with Congress without giving Senator Markey even more ammunition. - Comcast itself will have to pay retransmission consent fees to NBCU. Under the terms of its deal with GE, Comcast will own 51% and GE will own 49%. But Comcast and NBCU are still separate legal entities. Apparently, the FCC doesn't think those reasons will be sufficient to restrain retransmission consent fees or non-broadcast license fees. Neal McLain
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 16:13:38 -0400 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Finding Your Way Through the Mall or the Airport, With a Cellphone Map Message-ID: <p06240801c8d92042e0c6@[192.168.180.244]> Finding Your Way Through the Mall or the Airport, With a Cellphone Map By VERNE G. KOPYTOFF October 10, 2010 SAN FRANCISCO - Mobile phone maps have guided people through streets and alleys around the globe. But when those people step into a sprawling building, they can get lost. Inside, people have to ask strangers for directions or search for a directory or wall map. A number of start-up companies are charting the interiors of shopping malls, convention centers and airports to keep mobile phone users from getting lost as they walk from the food court to the restroom. Some of their maps might even be able to locate cans of sardines in a sprawling grocery store. ... http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/11/technology/11interior.html
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 14:50:56 -0700 From: Thad Floryan <thad@thadlabs.com> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: The Zombie Network: Beware 'Free Public WiFi' Message-ID: <4CB386C0.9030601@thadlabs.com> The following is somewhat funny; you might want to place any drinks and/or food you're holding down before reading on. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130451369 The Zombie Network: Beware 'Free Public WiFi' by Travis Larchuk It's in your airports, your coffee shops and your libraries: "Free Public WiFi." Despite its enticing name, the network, available in thousands of locations across the United States, does not actually provide access to the Internet. But like a virus, it has spread -- and may even be lurking on your computer right now. Wireless security expert Joshua Wright first noticed it about four years ago at an airport. "I went to connect to an available wireless network and I saw this option, Free Public WiFi," he remembers. "As I looked more and more, I saw this in more and more locations. And I was aware from my job and analysis in the field that this wasn't a sanctioned, provisioned wireless network, but it was actually something rogue." Free Public WiFi isn't set up like most wireless networks people use to get to the Internet. Instead, it's an "ad hoc" network -- meaning when a user selects it, he or she isn't connecting to a router or hot spot, but rather directly to someone else's computer in the area. Though it doesn't actually provide Internet access, the network has spread across the country thanks to an old Windows XP bug. How It Works When a computer running an older version of XP can't find any of its "favorite" wireless networks, it will automatically create an ad hoc network with the same name as the last one it connected to -- in this case, "Free Public WiFi." Other computers within range of that new ad hoc network can see it, luring other users to connect. And who can resist the word "free?" Not a lot of people, judging from the spread of Free Public WiFi. Computers with the XP bug that try to connect to the Internet will remember the name, create their own ad hoc networks and entice other users wherever they go. Microsoft is aware of the issue and says it has eliminated the network in more recent versions of Windows. It also created a fix to the problem for the older version of Windows XP -- Windows XP Service Pack 3 -- but many people still haven't updated their computers. That means, Wright says, the network continues to spread across the country like something from a horror movie -- the kind "where a zombie takes a hold of one person, bites them and they become infected by this zombie virus." It's not the only zombie network out there, either. Others you may have seen go by such alluring names as "linksys," "hpsetup," "tmobile" or "default." A Trick That's A Treat For Hackers No one knows for sure where Free Public WiFi began. One theory, Wright says, is that someone may have set it up as a joke. It might have been created to trick a friend into connecting "so he would get a Web page with some kind of a gross image or childish prank." Unintentionally creating or connecting to the ad hoc network isn't inherently harmful, despite its virus-like spread. It does, however, provide an access point for hackers to come in and check out the user's files. Part of Wright's job is to hack into a company's wireless network in order to expose vulnerabilities. When he sees Free Public WiFi, he says, "we break out the champagne." "Because I know at that point I will be able to get unlimited access to internal resources just from that one starting point."
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 15:01:16 -0500 From: Jim Haynes <jhaynes@cavern.uark.edu> To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Uptick in do-not-call violations Message-ID: <BuidnaS_puaR8C7RnZ2dnUVZ_vCdnZ2d@earthlink.com> Things have been fairly calm around here, but in the past week I've had three violations of do-not-call. One from our old and continuing enemy, "Credit Card Services" or some variation of that name. Another from a roofing company that identified itself as here in town, but they aren't in the local phone book. So they are either new or fly-by-night or both. And today one from an outfit in Branson MO wanting me to take a vacation package. They used the name of Branson Vacationland. The scuttlebutt on the web seems to be that Branson Vacationland is a legitimate visitors' bureau if you call them, but that some other outfits are using their name to make calls violating the do-not-call list. Before do-not-call I used to get an awful lot of calls from Branson companies; this is the first one in several years.
TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly to telecom- munications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to Usenet, where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit, mostly non-commercial educational service offered to the Internet by Bill Horne. All the contents of the Digest are compilation-copyrighted. You may reprint articles in some other media on an occasional basis, but please attribute my work and that of the original author. The Telecom Digest is moderated by Bill Horne. Contact information: Bill Horne Telecom Digest 43 Deerfield Road Sharon MA 02067-2301 781-784-7287 bill at horne dot net Subscribe: telecom-request@telecom-digest.org?body=subscribe telecom Unsubscribe: telecom-request@telecom-digest.org?body=unsubscribe telecom This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm- unications on the Internet, having been founded in August, 1981 and published continuously since then. Our archives are available for your review/research. We believe we are the oldest e-zine/mailing list on the internet in any category! URL information: http://telecom-digest.org Copyright (C) 2009 TELECOM Digest. All rights reserved. Our attorney is Bill Levant, of Blue Bell, PA. --------------------------------------------------------------- Finally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as yourself who provide funding in amounts deemed appropriate. Your help is important and appreciated. A suggested donation of fifty dollars per year per reader is considered appropriate. See our address above. Please make at least a single donation to cover the cost of processing your name to the mailing list. All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the author. Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization.
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