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From: herbison@ultra.enet.dec.com (B.J.  07-Sep-1990 1034)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: MCI Call Blocking
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Date: 7 Sep 90 14:50:53 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 626, Message 6 of 10


The following item is from the T.G.I.F. column by Alex Beam in
today's {Boston Globe} (Friday 7 September 1990).

            She Put it in Writing

Elena Fernandez is an MCI card holder who phoned the Globe last May
complaining that a Boston-to-Puerto Rico call she had made on Mother's
Day from a friend's phone had been "blocked" by MCI operators citing
high fraud rates on calls to the territory.  Fernandez, a customer in
good standing, felt the policy was discriminatory.  At the time, an
MCI spokeswoman said she didn't think the company had a policy of
``blocking'' calls, but promised to look into the case.  

Now Fernandez has detailed a second blocking incident, quoting an MCI
customer service representative, in a letter to the company's
corporate public relations director.  And now MCI's response has
changed.  MCI does block some third-party calls to the Caribbean area
code 809 because of fraud, explains spokeswoman Jane Levene, but not
to Puerto Rico.  Levene speculates that imprecise computer
instructions may have prompted MCI operators to mistakenly block
Fernandez' calls.

I called MCI customer service (1-800-444-4444) and and was told that
16 countries are blocked.  They will be sending me the list of the
countries.

        					B.J.

[Moderators Note: I doubt they will be sending you anything. AT&T
has told me twice they would send me the list of origin/destination
places they block, and they have yet to provide a list. This is an
illegal, very discriminatory practice -- both by AT&T and MCI. You
will note they block calls to third-world countries -- NEVER to the UK
or Australia. I am not saying they *should* block those places, only
that they discriminate against many immigrants to this country by
assuming the people are going to commit fraud. I certainly hope that
someone starts a class action suit against AT&T -- and all carriers if
appropriate -- forcing them to end this odious practice, or to
publicly list the origins/destinations which are blocked, and *why*,
and give precise figures to back up their claims, and let a court or
the FCC rule on the validity of it. The International Information
Center at 1-800-874-4000 tells me they will send the list; but they
never have. Maybe someone else can get a copy.   PAT]