33 Years of the Digest ... founded August 21, 1981
Copyright © 2014 E. William Horne. All Rights Reserved.

The Telecom Digest for Oct 16, 2014
Volume 33 : Issue 184 : "text" Format
Messages in this Issue:
AT&T Outage in Sonora, California (Bill Horne)
Verizon takes the Edge off its plan (Bill Horne)
Apple iPhone security - is this a sign of the Infocalypse? (Bill Horne)
CenturyLink seeks to shut down Frame Relay, ATM (Bill Horne)
CenturyLink accusses Comcast of unfair practices (Bill Horne)
AT&T fines are a slap on the wrist (Bill Horne)

The truth will set you free, but first it will make you miserable.
- James A. Garfield

See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details.

Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 13:22:13 -0400 From: bill@horneQRM.net (Bill Horne) To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: AT&T Outage in Sonora, California Message-ID: <20141015172213.GA17986@telecom.csail.mit.edu> SONORA, Calif. (KCRA) A downed tree is to blame for an AT&T service outage in the greater Sonora area that affected 37,000 customers Tuesday evening. Power had been restored to all customers as of 4 a.m. Wednesday, AT&T officials confirmed with KCRA 3. The outage was originally reported as a vandalism, but AT&T officials said that vandalism was ruled out once technicians arrived at the scene. http://www.kcra.com/news/local-news/news-sierra/37k-are-without-att-service-in-foothills/29135598 -or- http://goo.gl/T27nge -- Bill Horne (Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly) "If a man speaks in the forest, and there is no woman there to hear him, is he still wrong?" - Maura O'Connell
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 13:05:48 -0400 From: bill@horneQRM.net (Bill Horne) To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Verizon takes the Edge off its plan Message-ID: <20141015170548.GA17948@telecom.csail.mit.edu> Verizon EDGE and MORE Everything Changes Coming October 16 - 24 Payments, 75% Paid Off to "Edge Up," $15 Line Discount by Kellex, Droid Life On October 16, Verizon has a few changes to introduce to its Edge monthly device payment plan and a couple for its MORE Everything plans. According to multiple sources, we are looking at a bump from 20 to 24 monthly payments on Edge, a higher percentage of the device needing pay-off before an upgrade can occur, and bigger per line discounts if on Edge. Verizon is also adjusting its single line plans, moving them back to their original $60 and $75 price points. http://www.droid-life.com/2014/10/14/verizon-edge-more-everything-october-16/ -- Bill Horne (Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly) Yes, as through this world I've wandered I've seen lots of funny men; Some will rob you with a six-gun, And some with a fountain pen. - Woodie Guthrie
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 11:10:50 -0400 From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net> To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: Apple iPhone security - is this a sign of the Infocalypse? Message-ID: <m1m2pp$ntd$1@dont-email.me> iPhone Encryption and the Return of the Crypto Wars by Bruce Schneier Last week, Apple announced that it is closing a serious security vulnerability in the iPhone. It used to be that the phone's encryption only protected a small amount of the data, and Apple had the ability to bypass security on the rest of it. From now on, all the phone's data is protected. It can no longer be accessed by criminals, governments, or rogue employees. Access to it can no longer be demanded by totalitarian governments. A user's iPhone data is now more secure. To hear US law enforcement respond, you'd think Apple's move heralded an unstoppable crime wave. See, the FBI had been using that vulnerability to get into people's iPhones. In the words of cyberlaw professor Orin Kerr, "How is the public interest served by a policy that only thwarts lawful search warrants?" ... This is why the FBI's scare stories tend to wither after public scrutiny. A former FBI assistant director wrote about a kidnapped man who would never have been found without the ability of the FBI to decrypt an iPhone, only to retract the point hours later because it wasn't true. We've seen this game before. During the crypto wars of the 1990s, FBI Director Louis Freeh and others would repeatedly use the example of mobster John Gotti to illustrate why the ability to tap telephones was so vital. But the Gotti evidence was collected using a room bug, not a telephone tap. And those same scary criminal tropes were trotted out then, too. Back then we called them the Four Horsemen of the Infocalypse: pedophiles, kidnappers, drug dealers, and terrorists. Nothing has changed. https://www.schneier.com/crypto-gram-1410.html#2 -- Bill Horne (Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly) But life's so long babe Sittin' by my telephone But someday, someday darlin' You will realize I'm alone - Eric Clapton
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 22:07:23 -0400 From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net> To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: CenturyLink seeks to shut down Frame Relay, ATM Message-ID: <20141016020723.GA20141@telecom.csail.mit.edu> CenturyLink (NYSE: CTL) is seeking to shut down its legacy Frame Relay and ATM services in both its Embarq and CenturyTel affiliate regions, reflecting the service provider industry's ongoing shift to IP-based Ethernet business services. It filed a similar application for its Qwest affiliate last year. One of the primary reasons it is looking to shut down these legacy services is the equipment that supports them is no longer being made or supported by its main vendor, Alcatel-Lucent http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/centurylink-seeks-fcc-approval-shut-down-frame-relay-atm-service/2014-10-15 -or- http://goo.gl/osA5V3 -- Bill Horne (Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly) It looks like another fall Your friends don't seem to help at all So when you're feeling kind of cold and small Just look up your rainy day man - James Taylor
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 22:16:21 -0400 From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net> To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: CenturyLink accusses Comcast of unfair practices Message-ID: <20141016021621.GA20205@telecom.csail.mit.edu> Comcast allegedly trying to block CenturyLink from entering its territory CenturyLink says it will get worse if Comcast is allowed to buy Time Warner Cable. CenturyLink has accused Comcast of trying to prevent competition in cities and towns by making it difficult for the company to obtain reasonable franchise agreements from local authorities. CenturyLink made the claim yesterday in a filing that asks the Federal Communications Commission to block Comcast's proposed acquisition of Time Warner Cable (TWC) or impose conditions that prevent Comcast from using its market power to harm competitors. http://arstechnica.com/business/2014/08/comcast-allegedly-trying-to-block-centurylink-from-entering-its-territory/ -or- http://goo.gl/X3OGTM -- Bill Horne (Remove QRM from my address to email me directly) The day they laid poor Poncho low Lefty split for Ohio Where he got the bread to go Ain't nobody knows - Eric Von Schmidt
Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 22:43:58 -0400 From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net> To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org. Subject: AT&T fines are a slap on the wrist Message-ID: <m1nbdc$p8l$1@dont-email.me> AT&T fines are a slap on the wrist for unlawful actions: reader opinion I heard on the morning news that the FCC has levied a fine of $105 million on AT&T Wireless for cramming a practice of charging the consumer for unauthorized services, most of which you would never buy on your own. According to the FCC's press release, the consumers will receive $80 million, $20 million to state and local governments (?) and $5 million to the U.S. Treasury (naturally). All of this is a proverbial drop in the bucket to AT&T Wireless. http://www.al.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/10/att_fines_a_drop_in_the_bucket.html -or- http://goo.gl/rne03U -- Bill Horne (Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly) If I could Baby I'd give you my world Open up Everything's waiting for you - Lindsey Buckingham

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