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From: Norman R Tiedemann <normt@ihlpy.att.com>
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Answering Machine as Room Bug
Message-ID: <12430@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 21 Sep 90 18:38:50 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 666, Message 3 of 11


In article <12341@accuvax.nwu.edu>, wilkins@jarthur.claremont.edu
(Mark Wilkins) writes:

>This individual received an extremely odd call on her answering
>machine at home. At first, she just assumed this was crosstalk of
>some particularly nasty kind, although the voices were much clearer
>than when crosstalk is a problem.

>However, the next day a person she'd been interviewing for a job came in.
>Instantly, everything clicked.  He had been the one whose conversation was
>recorded on the phone.  Apparently he had a sophistcated auto-dial speaker 
>phone, either with more than one line or with three-way callbing.

>The question I have is this: Does anyone know of a way that someone
>inexperienced with such matters could accidentally set up a
>three-way call? Or did this have to be intentional? 

This is not that odd, I have gotten this on my machine a couple of
times and I now know exactly what causes it here. The person who was
recorded just has to have three way calling on his line and it is a very
easy thing to do completely ACCIDENTALLY!

He calls you, (to schedule the appointment or whatever), gets your
machine and decides he doesn't want to leave a message. He taps the
switch hook, which instead of hanging up, gives him the second line,
the CO on your end doesn't even detect the disconnect and keeps your
machine connected (and recording). He now has a threeway setup between
your machine, himself and the next person he called. Everything is
recorded and unless your machine has a beep or time limit or something
on it, he never knows. (I guess he would really get confused if he
tried to three way again.)

So it is fairly easy for an inexperienced "phone user" to do this and
not have a clue about what is going on.


	Norm Tiedemann		AT&T Bell Labs IH 2G-419
	att!ihlpy!normt		2000 Naperville Rd.
	normt@ihlpy.att.com	Naperville, IL	60566