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| Date: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 16:18:48 -0400
From: Julian Thomas <jt@jt-mj.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Obama signs "BuySecure" initiative to speed EMV adoption in the US
Message-ID: <E5B954FB-E6B4-41F9-B742-166DE26B5CAB@jt-mj.net>
On Oct 31, 2014, at 11:08, Barry Margolin <barmar@alum.mit.edu> wrote:
> Many places where I make credit card purchases don't even ask for
> signatures. I don't know if there's any particular rule for who does and
> doesn't.
I believe that it's optional under $50 but required above that amount.
-- -- --
jt
http://jt-mj.net
Changing operating systems is not as simple as changing underwear.
***** Moderator's Note *****
Changing operating systems has many similarities to changing
underwear:
* Anyone who asks you to do it is hiding something
* You should only do it for someone you trust
* Someone will always say you came up short
Bill Horne
Moderator
|
Date: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 19:27:17 +0000 (UTC)
From: wollman@bimajority.org (Garrett Wollman)
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: Obama signs "BuySecure" initiative to speed EMV adoption in the US
Message-ID: <m30nql$2k60$1@grapevine.csail.mit.edu>
In article <20141031140022.62415.qmail@ary.lan>,
John Levine <johnl@iecc.com> wrote:
> My US chip card does chip+signature if the terminal supports it,
> otherwise it does chip+pin. That seems fairly common. See this
> dandy Google doc that lists all US chip card issuers:
The EMV standard requires card issuers to give a preference-ordered
list of acceptable card-user-verification methods for card-present
transactions, which may include:
- none
- offline PIN (i.e., the chip verifies the PIN presented)
- online PIN (i.e., must be authorized via the payment network)
- signature
This allows each card issuer to set verification requirements
according to national custom and competitive situation. Of course,
not all terminals are capable of performing all verifications, and if
there is no mutually acceptable verification (to the merchant,
acquiring bank, payment network, and customer's bank), the transaction
is rejected.
In many early-adopter countries, offline PIN is the standard for all
non-ATM transactions; when this technology (or its national pre-
decessors) was introduced, the cost of communications lines for
online verification of all transactions was deemed too high, so the
card itself is given the ability to authorize transactions. (The
chip card is still free to say "this transaction requires online
authorization" on a per-transaction basis; e.g., if the amount is
greater than authorized or the customer has exceeded a daily
offline-authorization limit.)
-GAWollman
--
Garrett A. Wollman
wollman@bimajority.org
Opinions not shared by
my employers.
|
What intellectual phenomenon can be older, or more oft
repeated, than the story of a large research program
that impaled itself upon a false central assumption
accepted by all practitioners? - S.J. Gould, 1993
|
|
| Date: Sat, 1 Nov 2014 00:43:17 -0400
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: With School Ban Nearing End, New York City Works on How and When to Allow Cellphones
Message-ID: <EBEF3E9E-1672-4168-8192-9CE3EE2DD0DE@roscom.com>
As New York prepares to lift its longstanding ban on cellphones
carried by students in schools, it joins an increasing number of
cities, including Chicago and Miami, where school leaders are yielding
to the ubiquity of mobile phones and the futility of trying to keep
them out of the classroom.
In an era when many parents want constant access to their children and
students live in a digital social milieu, banning cellphones from
schools is increasingly seen as counterproductive. And teachers are
experimenting with technology and finding that the miniature computers
many students carry in their pockets can be valuable classroom tools.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/01/nyregion/with-school-ban-nearing-end-new-york-city-works-on-how-and-when-to-allow-cellphones.html
-or-
http://goo.gl/GWW5Sk
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 14:31:53 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Verizon, AT&T Are At It Again With More Data For Less Money
Message-ID: <m338uj$i35$1@dont-email.me>
by Mark Rogowsky
Another month, another promotion. At least for the moment, the
nation's two biggest carriers are lowering the cost of service plans
faster than consumers are increasing their appetites for mobile
data. While that should leave most of us with little to complain
about, the divergence between AT&T and Verizon at this point creates
some interesting choices heading into the holiday season. And to
further complicate matters Verizon has added an interesting sweetener,
along with striking an unfortunately sour note as it works to maintain
the top spot. For both potential and existing customers, there's much
to consider.
In a nutshell, two of the most popular More Everything plans - those
that give you a shared pool of data for multiple smartphones or
tablets to use each month - got a boost of 50% or better. The $80 plan
previously offered 6GB, now it offers 10GB. The $100 plan, which used
to offer 10GB, now includes 15GB. You can look at this a lot of
different ways. A family of four very likely can downgrade and save
$20 per month as most people use just 1-2GB per person and the large
pool allows for the low use of one person in a given month to give the
others even more data to play with.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/markrogowsky/2014/11/01/verizon-att-are-at-it-again-with-more-data-for-less-money/
-or-
http://goo.gl/ob2SEG
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
I am changing my name to 'Fannie Mae'
And I'm headed for that great receiving line
So when they hand 12 Billion Grand out
I'll be standing with my hand out
Yes sir, I'll get mine
- Paxton/Guthrie
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 15:02:57 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: CenturyLink Internet outage affecting Tennessee customers
Message-ID: <m33aor$p6f$1@dont-email.me>
Some CenturyLink customers in Tennessee have experienced Internet and
phone outages [OCT 30] as a result of cut in fiber optic lines by what a
spokeswoman described as "a third party".
Technicians were working to restore service, according to Patricia
Hatley, marketing development manager for CenturyLink in Tennessee and
Western North Carolina.
http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/article/121655/centurylink-internet-outage-affecting-tennessee-customers#ixzz3HqRYcghZ
-or-
http://goo.gl/Yq2JsR
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
There's a little gold ring you wear
On your hand makes me understand
There's another before me, you'll never be mine
I'm wasting my time
- Grassroots
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 15:10:34 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: CenturyLink Phone Book Inadequate
Message-ID: <m33b74$r1d$1@dont-email.me>
Last weekend, I happily retrieved my new CenturyLink phonebook from the
front porch where it had been left, thinking to myself, “What a great
service.” I then carried it inside to replace the old phone book from
last year, and tossed the old one. Mistake No. 1.
A few days later, while flipping through the pages of my new phone book,
something caught my eye, namely, my name wasn’t included, nor were the
names of several of my relatives or friends, none of whom are deceased
or have switched to private numbers. We had been listed in the previous
phonebook. However, we did have one thing in common, namely, we
subscribe to the Time Warner phone service rather than Century Link.
http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/story/opinion/readers/2014/11/01/centurylink-phone-book-inadequate/18270223/
-or-
http://goo.gl/YyBXJm
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
It's the same story the crow told me; it's the only one he knows.
Like the morning sun you come and like the wind you go.
Ain't no time to hate, barely time to wait,
Wo, oh, what I want to know, where does the time go?
- Grateful Dead
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 21:20:25 -0400
From: Bob K <SPAMpot@Rochester.RR.com>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: CenturyLink Phone Book Inadequate
Message-ID: <545586D9.8050003@Rochester.RR.com>
On 11/1/2014 3:10 PM, Bill Horne wrote:
> A few days later, while flipping through the pages of my new phone book,
> something caught my eye, namely, my name wasn't included, nor were the
> names of several of my relatives or friends ...
>
> http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/story/opinion/readers/2014/11/01/centurylink-phone-book-inadequate/18270223/
>
> -or-
>
> http://goo.gl/YyBXJm
>
You (or Betty) are lucky! Here, the residential directories are no
longer delivered unless you call and demand one. I did happen to be
in the neighborhood of the telephone company's office (about 12 miles
away) and they gave me one. But, the directory is now printed on well
recycled paper with smallest possible type font and ink that I think
also was recycled. Not anything for a person with failing eyes!
And, like in your case, the TW customers now are given a free
"unlisted" treatment. As a TW phone subscriber, I am now not in the
book. I have been told that in one of the TW statements there was a
notice that, for a fee, I could be included in the phone book put out
by the "real" phone company.
Many of the phone companies now have on-line directories that can be
searched. For here they have a residential & business directory for
2012 on line, and a 2014 residential only directory. Doing a search
for "smith" in both turned up well under half the number in the 2014
directory compared to 2012. (True, the old one included business, but
really not many with that name.) Tells me that Time Warner has quite
a number of customers!
Seems now I get just as many calls from non-friends as before, having
your phone number on the DNC list seems to at least give the
telemarketers a list of probable working numbers.
...Bob
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 16:06:30 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Cut to fiber-optic cable disrupts area landline service
Message-ID: <m33eg0$860$1@dont-email.me>
By Chris Olson
Landline phone users in Stutsman and Barnes counties [in North Dakota]
had limited phone service for about 6 1/2 hours Thursday after
CenturyLink’s fiber-optic line west of Valley City was cut.
Rachel Woodman, market development manager for CenturyLink, said a
third-party company was doing some digging for another
telecommunications company around 5:30 p.m. [on October 30] when the
CenturyLink fiber-optic line was cut.
http://www.jamestownsun.com/content/disruption-phone-service-cut-fiber-optic-cable-disrupts-area-landline-service
-or-
http://goo.gl/XcMRRr
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
You know the lies they always told you
And the love you never knew
What's the things they never showed you
That swallow the light from the sun inside your room, yeah
- Goo Goo Dolls
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 14:49:53 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: If you had a Verizon family plan in the 2000's, you've got some cash coming
Message-ID: <m33a0b$m2f$1@dont-email.me>
by Hunter Stuart
Verizon agreed to a proposed settlement last week under which it would
pay $64.2 million to settle claims that it overcharged customers who
signed up for family plans.
Family SharePlan customers were allegedly billed for in-network calls
that were supposed to be free, according to a class-action lawsuit filed
in 2006 in a New Jersey federal court. Customers with that plan were
also allegedly billed more than the advertised rate for additional
minutes they used over their monthly allowance.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/30/verizon-overcharging-64-million-settlement-family-plan_n_6070824.html
-or-
http://goo.gl/Gwq6s5
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
Well, I have to b'lieve in-between scenes, good people
Went and got 'em done in the sun, good people
Tourist information said to get on the stick
You ain't moving 'til you're grooving with a Cubana chick
So I hopped on a plane, I took a pill for my brain
And I discovered I was feeling all right
- Richard Fariña
|
| Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 16:43:26 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: AT&T, Verizon Using 'Perma-Cookies' to Track Customer Web Activity
Message-ID: <m33gl8$gfv$1@dont-email.me>
Both Verizon and AT&T appear to be engaging in some unsavory customer
tracking techniques, using unique identifying numbers to deliver
targeted advertisements to customers in what's called "Relevant
Advertising." As outlined by Wired, Verizon is altering the web traffic
of its customers by inserting a Unique Identifier Header or UIDH, a
temporary serial number that lets advertisers identify Verizon users on
the web.
According to Jacob Hoffman-Andrews of the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, the UIDH serves as a "perma-cookie" that can be read by any
web server to "build a profile" of internet habits. Verizon users cannot
turn off the UIDH, but opting out of the Relevant Mobile Advertising
Program prevents the information from being used to create targeted ads.
http://www.macrumors.com/2014/10/29/att-verizon-tracking-techniques/
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
Well I'll be damned
Here comes your ghost again
But that's not unusual
It's just that the moon is full
And you happened to call
- Joan Baez
|
| Date: Sat, 1 Nov 2014 16:20:06 -0400
From: Bill Horne <bill@horneQRM.net>
To: telecomdigestsubmissions.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Consumers wasted at least $300 million paying for AT&T's "unlimited" data
Message-ID: <20141101202006.GA7611@telecom.csail.mit.edu>
by Brian Fung
By now, you've probably heard that the Federal Trade Commission is
suing AT&T for how it treats its unlimited data customers. Despite
paying for an unlimited plan, these subscribers had their mobile
Internet slowed to dial-up speeds, or "throttled," once AT&T decided
they had surfed the Web too much. If that sounds nonsensical to you,
you're not alone: Tens of thousands of consumers have complained about
the practice, saying "unlimited" should mean just that - without
limits.
Just how big a deal is this? At the very least, we're talking about
hundreds of millions of dollars in potential losses to consumers.
Although federal regulators haven't disclosed how much they're seeking
in damages from AT&T, we can do some math to put a rough dollar value
on AT&T's throttling practices. I asked a number of economists,
antitrust lawyers and former FTC officials familiar with the process
of calculating damages to help give a rough idea of the money that may
be at stake here.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2014/10/31/consumers-wasted-at-least-300-million-paying-for-atts-unlimited-data/
-or-
http://goo.gl/iDxE6R
--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my address to write to me directly)
Someday when I'm lonely
Wishing you weren't so far away
Then I will remember
Things we said today
- Lennon/McCartney
|
TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly to telecom-
munications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in
addition to Usenet, where it appears as the moderated newsgroup
'comp.dcom.telecom'.
TELECOM Digest is a not-for-profit educational service offered to
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This Digest is the oldest continuing e-journal about telecomm-
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published continuously since then. Our archives are available for
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URL information: http://telecom-digest.org
Copyright © 2014 E. William Horne. All rights reserved.
Finally, the Digest is funded by gifts from generous readers such as
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All opinions expressed herein are deemed to be those of the
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