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The Telecom Digest for February 17, 2012
Volume 31 : Issue 45 : "text" Format
====== 30 years of TELECOM Digest -- Founded August 21, 1981 ======
|
Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the
Internet. All contents here are copyrighted by Bill Horne and
the individual writers/correspondents. Articles may be used in other
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included in the fair use quote. By using any name or email address
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owner.
Addresses herein are not to be added to any mailing list, nor to be
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that address. Chain letters, viruses, porn, spam, and miscellaneous junk
are definitely unwelcome.
We must fight spam for the same reason we fight crime: not because we
are naive enough to believe that we will ever stamp it out, but because
we do not want the kind of world that results when no one stands
against crime. - Geoffrey Welsh
See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details
and the name of our lawyer, and other stuff of interest.
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Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:11:06 -0500
From: Telecom Digest Moderator <redacted@invalid.telecom.csail.mit.edu>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Thank you, Robert
Message-ID: <20120216201106.GA27684@telecom.csail.mit.edu>
I've just returned from a two-week stay in Maine, where I was asked to
house-sit for an old friend who had to leave unexpectedly.
My thanks to Robert Bonomi for taking on the Moderator job during my
absence.
Bill
--
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2012 00:29:58 -0500
From: danny burstein <dannyb@panix.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: FCC gently tightens rules on "robot calls".
Message-ID: <Pine.NEB.4.64.1202160025230.18298@panix5.panix.com>
Of course politicians and "non profits" are still exempt. And as all
of us who are still getting calls from "Rachel of Cardholder
Services", we've just got to wonder how concerned the FCC/FTC really
area...
------
[FCC press release]
1.In this Report and Order (Order), we take steps to protect consumers
from unwanted telemarketing calls pursuant to the Telephone Consumer
Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA).1 The protections we adopt will protect
consumers from unwanted autodialed or prerecorded telemarketing calls,
also known as "telemarketing robocalls,"
.....
1.None of our actions change requirements for prerecorded messages
that are non-telemarketing, informational calls, such as calls by or
on behalf of tax-exempt non-profit organizations, calls for political
purposes,
------------
rest:
http://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-strengthens-consumer-protections-against-telemarketing-robocalls-0
-or-
http://goo.gl/bbn08
_____________________________________________________
Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key
dannyb@panix.com
[to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]
Date: 16 Feb 2012 16:37:37 -0500
From: kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey)
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: FCC gently tightens rules on "robot calls".
Message-ID: <jhjsv1$bje$1@panix2.panix.com>
danny burstein <dannyb@panix.com> wrote:
>Of course politicians and "non profits" are still exempt. And as all
>of us who are still getting calls from "Rachel of Cardholder
>Services", we've just got to wonder how concerned the FCC/FTC really
>area...
Rachel's real name is Rajani and she is calling from a call center in
Bangalore, far out of the reach of the FTC. Cheap long distance
providers using VoIP have made it much less expensive to call friends
abroad, but they have also made it much less expensive for fraudulent
operations abroad to call you.
--scott
- -
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."
***** Moderator's Note *****
The solution is simple: wait until Rachel finishes her announcement,
tap through to speak to a human, and waste as much of that person's
time as possible. If only 1/10 of Rachel's targets did that, she and
her friends - wherever they are - would be out of business in a month.
Bill Horne
Moderator
Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2012 23:35:44 +0000 (UTC)
From: wollman@bimajority.org (Garrett Wollman)
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: FCC gently tightens rules on "robot calls".
Message-ID: <jhk3sg$10fl$1@grapevine.csail.mit.edu>
In article <jhjsv1$bje$1@panix2.panix.com>,
Scott Dorsey <kludge@panix.com> wrote:
>Rachel's real name is Rajani and she is calling from a call center in
>Bangalore, far out of the reach of the FTC.
Rachel may be out of the reach of the FTC, but the sleaze who hires
her employer almost certainly is not.
-GAWollman
--
Garrett A. Wollman | What intellectual phenomenon can be older, or more oft
wollman@bimajority.org| repeated, than the story of a large research program
Opinions not shared by| that impaled itself upon a false central assumption
my employers. | accepted by all practitioners? - S.J. Gould, 1993
Date: Wed, 15 Feb 2012 23:14:26 -0600
From: bonomi@host122.r-bonomi.com (Robert Bonomi)
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: New FCC rules restricting 'robocalls'
Message-ID: <cL2dne6Hr-AvDaHSnZ2dnUVZ_uWdnZ2d@posted.nuvoxcommunications>
The FCC today released a 'Report and Order' changing the rules regarding
automated telemarketing calls. Highlights, and implementation timetable:
1) 30 days after publication of the new Order in the Federal Register,
significantly lower limits on 'abandoned' calls take effect.
2) 90 days after publication, all automated calls must include an
automatic, interactive, 'opt out' mechanism, announced at the beginning
of the call, and available for the entire duration of the call.
i.e., press the magic button you are automatically added to the caller's
company-wide 'do not call' list, and the call must immediately disconnect.
3) 12 months after publication, a caller must have express_written_consent
to make automated calls, regardless of whether or not an 'existing
business relationship' exists.
Some exceptions remain -- certain calls from medical services providers covered
under the privacy provisions of HIPPA, and calls made WITH_THE_CONSENT of
the called party from a non-profit charity (Note: advance 'consent' is now
required, albeit not "written consent"). Also calls made for 'emergency
purposes' are allowed.
The new FCC rules 'harmonize' with recent FTC 'telemarketing rule' changes.
The real issue, as always, is going to be 'enforcement'. One will have to
'wait and see' on that.
All the gory details at:
http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0215/FCC-12-21A1.pdf
http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0215/FCC-12-21A2.pdf
http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0215/FCC-12-21A3.pdf
http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0215/FCC-12-21A4.pdf
Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2012 08:52:22 -0500
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: TomTom GPS watches you drive, sets your insurance rate accordingly
Message-ID: <p0624081ccb62b97b5f86@[10.0.1.8]>
TomTom GPS watches you drive, sets your insurance rate accordingly
By Bill Howard
February 10, 2012
The next portable navigation device on your dash could watch your
driving habits and provide you with a lower insurance rate, but it
could also rat you out (too fast! too hard on the brakes!) and have
you paying more. The next step in usage-based insurance comes
courtesy of Dutch firm TomTom and UK insurer Motaquote, who are
teaming to offer a form of Carrot-and-Stick Auto Insurance. That's
not the real title but it's close enough because it penalizes
aggressive drivers at the same time it rewards good ones. TomTom's
technology can be viewed as Big Brother (if you're paranoid) while it
could be a godsend for good drivers or for those that really need
low-cost insurance and are willing to reprogram their driving habits
to get it.
...
http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/117889-tomtom-watches-you-drive-insurance-rate
Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2012 20:23:13 +0000 (UTC)
From: David Lesher <wb8foz@panix.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: LD carrier, what's that?
Message-ID: <jhjojh$627$1@reader1.panix.com>
For years, I used "usadatanet" as my LD carrier. It was not FGD; rather,
you called a local POP, it answered & knew you from ANI/CID; you dialed
10D. The advantage was there were no monthly fees and no minimums; so it
was ideal for my very minumum usage.
A telecommuting friend also used it as his employer got the
bill...not him.
Somehow it morphed into "Spot" and he has continued to use
it. (I now have other options.) But he got a message they are
dropping service in DC and several other states; no idea why.
Are there any carriers left out there without big
minimums/monthly fees....? I'll listen for pins dropping in
response.
--
A host is a host from coast to coast.................wb8foz@nrk.com
& no one will talk to a host that's close........[v].(301) 56-LINUX
Unless the host (that isn't close).........................pob 1433
is busy, hung or dead....................................20915-1433
Date: 16 Feb 2012 23:07:48 -0000
From: "John Levine" <johnl@iecc.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: LD carrier, what's that?
Message-ID: <20120216230748.27861.qmail@joyce.lan>
I don't know anyone who'll do dial-1 telephony without a monthly fee.
For my 800 number and beach house, I use Pioneer Telecom, rates are
about 3 cpm, no minimum if you get billed electronically, monthly
"regulatory recovery fee" is $1.61 for my account.
If you like dialaround and you're ever in Canada, get a President's
Choice prepaid calling card at a Loblaws's grocery store. Rates are 4
cpm (Canadian cents) to U.S. and Canada, and you can set it up online
to top up automatically with $5 from a credit card when you run out of
credit. Access is by toll-free number, you can tell it your home
number so you don't have to enter a PIN from home. They used to
expire but don't any more so long as they're linked to a credit card.
Since it is a Canadian calling card, there is NO PAYPHONE SURCHARGE.
That's right, none, even in the U.S.
R's,
John
Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2012 00:58:28 -0500
From: Monty Solomon <monty@roscom.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Flaw Found in an Online Encryption Method
Message-ID: <p06240818cb624b50f555@[10.0.1.8]>
Flaw Found in an Online Encryption Method
By JOHN MARKOFF
February 14, 2012
SAN FRANCISCO - A team of European and American mathematicians and
cryptographers have discovered an unexpected weakness in the
encryption system widely used worldwide for online shopping, banking,
e-mail and other Internet services intended to remain private and
secure.
The flaw - which involves a small but measurable number of cases -
has to do with the way the system generates random numbers, which are
used to make it practically impossible for an attacker to unscramble
digital messages. While it can affect the transactions of individual
Internet users, there is nothing an individual can do about it. The
operators of large Web sites will need to make changes to ensure the
security of their systems, the researchers said.
The potential danger of the flaw is that even though the number of
users affected by the flaw may be small, confidence in the security
of Web transactions is reduced, the authors said.
The system requires that a user first create and publish the product
of two large prime numbers, in addition to another number, to
generate a public "key." The original numbers are kept secret. To
encrypt a message, a second person employs a formula that contains
the public number. In practice, only someone with knowledge of the
original prime numbers can decode that message.
For the system to provide security, however, it is essential that the
secret prime numbers be generated randomly. The researchers
discovered that in a small but significant number of cases, the
random number generation system failed to work correctly.
The importance in ensuring that encryption systems do not have
undetected flaws cannot be overstated. The modern world's online
commerce system rests entirely on the secrecy afforded by the public
key cryptographic infrastructure.
The researchers described their work in a paper that the authors have
submitted for publication at a cryptography conference to be held in
Santa Barbara, Calif., in August. They made their findings public
Tuesday because they believe the issue is of immediate concern to the
operators of Web servers that rely on the public key cryptography
system.
...
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/15/technology/researchers-find-flaw-in-an-online-encryption-method.html
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