Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!mailrus!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request From: cmcl2!dasys1!eravin@rutgers.edu (Ed Ravin) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Overhearing Conversations Message-ID: <6329@accuvax.nwu.edu> Date: 12 Apr 90 16:28:55 GMT Sender: news@accuvax.nwu.edu Reply-To: Ed Ravin Organization: Network Nitpickers of America Lines: 21 Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 250, Message 11 of 11 In article <5855@accuvax.nwu.edu> The Moderator writes: ::Moderator's Note: Instead of crossed lines it may have been crosstalk. Wires ::get wet; insulation around old wires is sometimes poor, etc. On occassion ::when I have had to wait a few seconds for dial tone, the amount of crosstalk ::was incredible [...] It can be fun to listen to! Oh dear, this is against the law! The Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 is pretty clear that it is illegal to listen to "protected communications" (in this case telephone conversations) without consent of the parties involved regardless of how you encounter it: deliberately, accidentally, unwillingly, due to faulty equipment, over your scanner, or over your TV set. Your legal responsibility is to turn off the offending equipment when you discover that you are listening to "protected communications". Ed Ravin | hombre!dasys1!eravin | "A mind is a terrible thing (BigElectricCatPublicUNIX)| eravin@dasys1.UUCP | to waste-- boycott TV!" Reader bears responsibility for all opinions expressed in this article.