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From: sixhub!kk4fs!root@crdgw1.ge.com (Paul Schmidt -)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Hacker Altering Voicemail Messages
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Date: 3 Oct 90 21:23:07 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 711, Message 6 of 7


 From the JOHNSON CITY PRESS, Wednesday, October 3, 1990

HACKER ALTERING RECORDED PHONE MESSAGES

By Leslie Loyd
Associated Press Writer


KINGSPORT, TN - A computer hacker is tapping into voice mail telephone
messages and replacing them with explicit sexual descriptions, a
telephone company spokesman said Tuesday.

        Phil Timp, a spokesman for United Telephone Co., said the
company has received 70 complaints.

        "All of the sudden in the last two weeks, we've had a barrage
of complaints," Timp said.  "What the motive is we don't know...
Obviously they're very disturbed."

        The FBI and Kingsport police were called in Tuesday to investigate.

        ... (portion omitted describing voice mail) ...

        "(Subscribers) are checking their messages and hearing this,"
Timp said.  "Imagine if your mother called."

        He said subscribers frequently use the last four digits of
their telephone number as their access code because it is easy to
remember.  But that also makes the code easy to break.  Timp said
subscribers should check messages and change access code frequently.

        Timp said someone is using a computer to tap into the system
and figure out the codes.

        "It's a knowledgable user,"  Timp said.

        He said he doesn't know if any subscribers have canceled
because of the explicit messages.

        "We're doing everything we can to make sure these people can
continue their voice mail service," Timp said.

        "It's the first time we've had a problem to this degree," he
said.  The company began offering the service two years ago and has
had a few isolated incidents like this.