---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-ID: <1xxdc1vgo7fm1$.tljvsifgc70l$.dlg@40tude.net> Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2016 01:55:27 -0500 From: tlvp <mPiOsUcB.EtLlLvEp@att.net> Subject: Re: A 10-Digit Key Code to Your Private Life: Your Cellphone Number On Sun, 13 Nov 2016 13:03:33 -0500, Monty Solomon wrote: > A 10-Digit Key Code to Your Private Life: Your Cellphone Number > > The cellphone number ... is increasingly used as a link to private > information maintained by all sorts of companies ... I find it hard to believe that numbers that come and go as you buy and toss burner phones, or take out and let lapse MVNO activations, can be deemed such a valuable "link to private info ..." :-) . Cheers, -- tlvp -- Avant de repondre, jeter la poubelle, SVP. ------------------------------ Message-ID: <94a64276-d20d-4779-8e2b-1bdbd802e019@googlegroups.com> Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2016 14:29:37 -0800 (PST) From: HAncock4 <withheld@invalid.telecom-digest.org> Subject: Re: A look inside a Verizon switch location On Saturday, November 12, 2016 at 10:35:12 PM UTC-5, Bill Horne wrote: > > https://books.google.com/books?id=jikDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA5&dq=popular%20science%201939%20bell%20telephone&pg=PA5#v=onepage&q=popular%20science%201939%20bell%20telephone&f=false > > That was a delightful trip down memory lane: not the bit about > visiting a central office, but rather a look at one of the classic > American publications, with lots of optimistic stories about how > science would make our lives so much easier. They had roller skates > that could trim the grass, a night-stick that included a flashlight, > and an observation tower supported by a hydraulic lift so that > officials at a race track could get a better view. Google books may be reached via: https://books.google.com They have Popular Science, Popular Mechanics, and LIFE going way back. MAD Magazine did a spoof of P/S and P/M with exaggerated home workshop projects. One included a home-built airliners, using seats from a theatre converted into a supermarket, flattened tin cans for body skin, and vacuum cleaners for engines. The Bell System used to run ads in all three publications. Some of the ads touted the high quality of Bell System service and Western Electric equipment, which in those days was true. A sad comparison to Verizon today. (During WW II, Bell ran ads asking subscribers NOT to call Long Distance due to war traffic overload). In the 1960s, both P/S and P/M ran articles and ads for bootleg telephone extensions. They became rather popular in those days for subscribers who resented pay Bell's monthly $1 rental fee*. However, Bell _and_ the regulators did not like bootleg extensions for two reasons: 1) it deprived Bell of revenue needed to support the universal service business model, and 2) even though the connection is pretty simple, lots of people screwed up and it resulted in unnecessary repair visits. A few people were even stupid enough to connect their phone line to house power. (Bell service techs back then told me stories of consumer screw-ups with bootleg extensions). * The fee varied by region and class of service, but was roughly $1. A Trimline or Princess set had an additional charge of $1 per month. While some of the revenue was used for cross-subsidy, it should be noted that back then Bell took responsibility end-to-end service. If you had any problem with any of your phones, they came out to fix it for free promptly. None of today's nonsense about which side of the Demarc box, inside wiring, or the set; Bell fixed everything. ***** Moderator's Note ***** The "war traffic overload" was real: many young Toll Test technicians had to learn Morse Code - the American Morse Code, no less - because "company" traffic, such as repair tickets, install orders, etc., had to be sent via telegraph circuits which were simplexed onto the trunk pairs, thus keeping the precious pairs available for paying customers. Bill Horne Moderator ------------------------------ Message-ID: <04EE524C-E8EF-4031-BDD2-17D64BDDCBB0@roscom.com> Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2016 09:49:07 -0500 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> Subject: OAuth 2.0 Hack Exposes 1 Billion Mobile Apps to Account Hijacking OAuth 2.0 Hack Exposes 1 Billion Mobile Apps to Account Hijacking by Michael Mimoso Third-party applications that allow single sign-on via Facebook and Google and support the OAuth 2.0 protocol, are exposed to account hijacking. Three Chinese University of Hong Kong researchers presented at Black Hat EU last week a paper called "Signing into One Billion Mobile LApp Accounts Effortlessly with OAuth 2.0." The paper describes an attack that takes advantage of poor OAuth 2.0 implementations and puts more than one billion apps in jeopardy. https://threatpost.com/oauth-2-0-hack-exposes-1-billion-mobile-apps-to-account-hijacking/121889/ ------------------------------ Message-ID: <86D2F4DE-2D80-4095-9BFB-BC26E8C7C284@roscom.com> Date: Sun, 13 Nov 2016 13:06:48 -0500 From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com> Subject: Where Cellphones Are Lifelines, Start-Ups Spy Opportunities About a billion people in the developing world have basic smartphones, and for many of them, it's their only computer and communication device. Now some start-ups are emerging to exploit the opportunities and manage the problems that this creates. Tala, for example, culls data from cellphones to gauge a person's ability and willingness to repay loans. To its founder and chief executive, Shivani Siroya, the cellphone number is an entry point to help bolster the "emerging middle class" in countries like Kenya, the Philippines and Tanzania by giving them access to credit. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/13/business/cellphones-lifelines-start-ups-spy-opportunities.html ------------------------------ ********************************************* End of telecom Digest Tue, 15 Nov 2016