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From: ecl@mtgzy.att.com (Evelyn C Leeper)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: AT&T Calling Card Discrimination
Message-ID: <9860@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 17 Jul 90 14:17:07 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 495, Message 4 of 10


In article <9738@accuvax.nwu.edu> telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM
Moderator) writes:

> As noted in messages here in TELECOM Digest, AT&T states in their
> advertising and in their tariffs that the calling card is universal
> and can be used to call anyone, anywhere, using the AT&T network.

> Anyone, that is, unless you are a Mexican living in southern
> California wanting to call home from a payphone at the place where you
> live ... or if you are an Israeli or Iranian citizen at JFK trying to
> call home before you board your flight. Then, the presumption by AT&T
> is you are likely to be committing fraud, so your call will not be
> processed.

Since I work for AT&T I may be considered a non-disinterested party,
but how does AT&T determine that you are an Israeli citizen or a
Mexican when you punch your number into the phone?  (Or when you apply
for the card, for that matter.)


Evelyn C. Leeper  |  +1 908-957-2070  |  att!mtgzy!ecl or  ecl@mtgzy.att.com


[Moderator's Note: They can't tell 'what you are' when you apply for
the Calling Card or new credit card, other than perhaps making certain
observations about your name and address. But if credit card calls
from a certain ethnic neighborhood to a foreign country which is home
to the residents of that neighborhood are redlined, then it might be
safe to make some assumptions about AT&T's attitude in the matter,
particularly if calls to the UK and Sweden are permitted from the very
same coin phones, while calls to Iran, Mexico or Korea are refused.
Their argument 'we are doing it to protect YOU' doesn't hold water,
since calls to Israel cost the same, on the average as calls to
Norway, yet airport payphones block calls to Israel using a Calling
Card. If they were protecting me against fraud (instead of themselves,
in what I believe is an illegal manner), they would disallow *all*
credit card calls from phones in the areas in particular. Not just the
calls to places whose citizens they suspect are likely to make fraud
phone calls.  PT]