Message-ID: <20210527223330.46872799@telecom2018.csail.mit.edu>
Date: Thu, 27 May 2021 22:33:30 +0000 (UTC)
From: Moderator <telecomdigestsubmissions@remove-this.telecom-digest.org>
Subject: FCC approves plan to make some phone calls cheaper for
inmates and their families
BY Matt Reynolds
The Federal Communications Commission voted unanimously Thursday to
make phone calls more affordable for people in prisons or jails by
approving a plan to reduce out-of-state call rates by at least
one-third.
The FCC capped at 12 cents per minute the rate for prison calls and 14
cents per minute the rates in larger jails. Interstate rate caps were
previously set at 21 cents per minute for debit and prepaid calls from
prisons and jails with more than 1,000 inmates, according to an FCC
proposal.
https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/fcc-curbs-out-of-state-call-rates-in-prisons
?utm_source=salesforce_395197&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=monthly_email
Message-ID: <20210527231209.GA7412@telecom.csail.mit.edu>
Date: Thu, 27 May 2021 23:12:09 +0000
From: Bill Horne <malQassRimiMlation@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: FCC approves plan to make some phone calls cheaper for
inmates and their families
On Thu, May 27, 2021 at 10:33:30PM +0000, Telecom Digest Moderator wrote:
> BY Matt Reynolds
>
> The Federal Communications Commission voted unanimously Thursday to
> make phone calls more affordable for people in prisons or jails by
> approving a plan to reduce out-of-state call rates by at least
> one-third.
>
> The FCC capped at 12 cents per minute the rate for prison calls and 14
> cents per minute the rates in larger jails. Interstate rate caps were
> previously set at 21 cents per minute for debit and prepaid calls from
> prisons and jails with more than 1,000 inmates, according to an FCC
> proposal.
>
https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/fcc-curbs-out-of-state-call-rates-in-prisons?utm_source=3Dsalesforce_395197&utm_medium=3Demail&utm_campaign=monthly_email
Before I worked in the prison-phone industry, if I heard a news story
about high phone call costs from prisons, I would think to myself
"Don't do the crime if you can't do the time - and everything that
comes with it!"
I suppose my attitude was in the middle range for a working-class guy:
having followed the rules myself, I was scornful of those who were
trying to get lower costs for criminals, and I suggested to those who
brought the subject up that the inmates could be provided with pencils
and paper to write letters home, just like I used when I served in
Vietnam.
However, I took a job installing and fixing phones in prisons, and
after finding out a bit of the "inside story" (pun intended), I
realized that it's nowhere near as simple a problem as I had imagined.
There are a lot of things that affect the costs of prison calls: here
are just a few of the ones I learned about.
1. It is VERY expensive to send a technician into a prison. There are
metal detectors, identity checks, tools lists and counts, plus
occasional personal searches. It typically took me twenty to thirty
minutes to get past the guardhouse, AND another twenty to thirty
minutes to get back out.
2. No matter what the problem was, if I encountered unexpected
conditions and needed a part that I hadn't brought in with me, the
whole checkout/checkin process had to happen again.
3. Prison phones have to be specially manufactured, with
attack-resistant handsets, touch-tone pads, and wiring. The average
install time for a single-line set, functionally identical to a
Western Electric "2554" wall set, was over three hours, because of
the need to run wires in conduits, site it so as to prevent access
by passersby, and drill mounting holes in concrete walls.
Those are some of the reasons that the costs have been high. On the
other hand, there are valid reasons for the government's interest in
making calls from prisons less expensive:
1. Inmate demand that their wives, children, or parents pay for
collect calls through "independent" operator-service companies. The
combination of higher-than-normal "collect" rates, tied to the
"independent" service company fees - which could range into
double-digits for a collect call - imposed an unneeded and
unjustified toll (pun intended) on inmate's families.
2. I never saw a single prison where inmates could receive calls.
Although I don't claim to be an expert in confinement planning,
ISTM that having incoming lines in excercise years or other
semi-public areas would dramatically reduce costs.
3. Petite Bourgeois prejudices to the contrary, keeping in touch with
family does improve morale in inmate populations, and that means
fewer disruptions and fewer offenses that might extend an inmate's
sentence. The less time an inmate spends incarcerated, the less
likely he is to recidivate.
Suffice to say, and I'll admit that this applis to me as well as many
others, in public discussions about how to best and most effectively
reduce crime, common sense is all too uncommon.
FWIW. YMMV.
Bill
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my email address to write to me directly)
Message-ID: <20210527183351.3FFD4799@telecom2018.csail.mit.edu>
Date: Thu, 27 May 2021 18:33:51 +0000 (UTC)
From: Moderator <telecomdigestsubmissions@remove-this.telecom-digest.org>
Subject: Mexican Government Orders The Creation Of A National
Registry Of Mobile Telephones Users.
by Gustavo Alcocer
On April 16, 2021, an amendment to the Federal Telecommunications and
Broadcasting Law was published in the Official Gazette, aimed at the
creation of a National Registry of Mobile Telephone Users, by means of
which it is intended to create a database with information on
individuals or legal entities who own mobile telephone lines.
These new provisions were created with the purpose of collaborating
with the competent authorities involved in the combat of crimes via
telephone.
https://www.mondaq.com/mexico/telecoms-mobile-cable-communications/1064332/mexican-government-orders-the-creation-of-a-national-registry-of-mobile-telephones-users?email_access=on
Message-ID: <s8ovpf$ioh$1@dont-email.me>
Date: 27 May 2021 15:34:54 -0500
From: "Dave Garland" <dave.garland@wizinfo.com>
Subject: Re: Mobile phone companies can change your phone's
software?
On 5/25/2021 7:02 PM, Stuart McGraw wrote:
> I was looking at Tracfone's Terms
> and Conditions [https://www.tracfone.com/termsandconditions]
> and was horrified to read:
> * we may remotely change your phone's software, applications, or
> * programming without notice. This could affect information
> * stored on your phone, your phone's programming, and how you are
> * able to use your phone.
>
> Is this a common condition for mobile service providers?
I reviewed the T&C for my Mint Mobile service, and while it is as
one-sided as any other vendor, it did not contain any provision for
changing anything about my phone beyond their provision of service.
It occurs to me that such a clause might be necessary if the telecom
provides any support (such as software updates) for the phone itself
(I purchased an unlocked refurb Pixel off eBay, and Google provided
software updates until the phone went EOL).
That said, in the US one can probably assume that (T&C
notwithstanding) agencies of sufficient legal power may be able to get
into, and muck with, your (or my, or anyone's) phone without your
knowledge or consent.
*********************************************
End of telecom Digest Sat, 29 May 2021
