Path: utzoo!mnetor!tmsoft!torsqnt!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!ucsd!casbah.acns.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request From: gast@cs.ucla.edu (David Gast) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: 800 Numbers, Voice Mail, and Privacy Message-ID: Date: 16 Feb 91 06:00:00 GMT Sender: news@casbah.acns.nwu.edu Organization: TELECOM Digest Lines: 23 Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 11, Issue 119, Message 5 of 11 > A similar story ... if you know the checking account number and last > four digits of the social security number, you can access checking > account balances for any personal Bank of America account. One calls > the local number for customers service. I checked with the bank, and > they have no method for substituting a random or chosen pin for the > SS#, nor for blocking the use of the service. Actually, you do not need the SSN. All you need is the account number. With only the account number, it will not tell you the balance, but it will tell you if a there is at least $N in the account (that is, will this check bounce?). A simple application of binary search will yield the account balance although you might stop after being within plus or minus some epsilon. I presume that you don't really care if the person has $503.12 or $508.31. Further, the telephone number is the main customer service number and the VM prompts lead to the correct choices. If you are in a branch, you can pick up the phone and go from there. I think the first VM choice is #2. David