Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!ames!killer!vector!nobody
From: mcb@tis.llnl.gov (Michael C. Berch)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Pacific Bell Calling Card Blunder
Message-ID: <telecom-v09i0022m05@vector.UUCP>
Date: 20 Jan 89 06:32:57 GMT
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X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 22, message 5

Recently I received in the mail a rather curious packet from Pacific Bell:
a new Calling Card (made of paper, not a "credit card" with mag strip
like the last one), and a letter of explanation, from which I quote:

	"YOUR REPLACEMENT PACIFIC BELL CALLING CARD IS HERE!

	In response to a Federal Court ruling, Pacific Bell has decided to
	remove the International Number from its Calling Card.  Various
	long-distance companies have arrangements for international calling.
	Please contact your long-distance company ... [etc.]"

I have a couple of questions about this, which will appear below, but
the main reason for this message is the following:

	"We've Added Something New to Make Your Calling Card Even More
	Convenient...

	Notice those four extra digits at the end of your phone number?
	They're your own Special Access Code.  You'll need this whenever you
	use your Calling Card to make a call.  Now that your Special Access
	Code is right on your card, you'll never have to worry about
	forgetting it."

MY GOD!  I nearly fainted after reading this.  There goes five years of
anti-fraud progress out the window in one fell swoop of marketing
hype.  I looked at it again to make sure I was really seeing it.  Yes,
they printed the PIN right there on the card.  If a bank did that with
an ATM card, it would probably make the front page of the newspapers.
What PINHEADS!!  Every time you think that some people are beginning
to understand some security issues, some bozo in the marketing
department blows it for everybody.

As I have already destroyed the offending card and plan to cancel it
(I have been using it regularly for AT&T long distance; it seemed to
work just fine) and replace it with an AT&T card, can someone explain
what the practical differences, if any, are between the AT&T card and
a calling card issued by a telco?  Also, what was the issue with respect
to the international callback number?  I only used it a couple of
times, from Japan in 1985, and more recently have used AT&T USA DIRECT
>from Germany and the UK, and recommend it highly.

Michael C. Berch
mcb@tis.llnl.gov / uunet!tis.llnl.gov!mcb / ames!lll-tis!mcb