Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
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Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
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Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#2What's next? EXAMPLE.COM becomes an actual site?
Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#3What's next? EXAMPLE.COM becomes an actual site?
In that same line of thinking, who gets the email @test.com?
Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#4Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#5http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/555_%28telephone_number%29
Much more interesting (from a hacker's perspective) were all the telco services provided using specific exchanges. For any given ILEC there was an exchange used for services provided to customers or employees, including everything from phone testing services and remote terminal access to business customer information and voicemail. By calling these numbers you could find some neat hidden services, and they were free from any phone. You can imagine how bored kids at school with a payphone could discover quite a bit in their spare time.
The DATU was my favorite. It was a secret lineman's number to test circuits, which also enabled you to listen in on live lines. Using these numbers without proper authorization meant jail time, but they had to catch you first :) Ringback was also a fun way to pass the time. Dial the number and hang up, and 30 seconds later the phone would start ringing, and i'd watch who would go answer it. Like I said, bored kids...
Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#6This isn't new at all. For as far back as I can remember you could dial 555-1212 from any area code and get directory assistance for that area code. There's even a toll free 800 number (1-800-555-1212) which prompts you for the city you'd like.
Haven't used it in a long time (seriously who would when you can search the internet on your smartphone?) but I think it's the same service as 411 minus the $X/min fee (the 800 number version is free, I think the non-800 versions might bill you).
Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#7Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#8This isn't new at all. For as far back as I can remember you could dial 555-1212 from any area code and get directory assistance for that area code. There's even a toll free 800 number (1-800-555-1212) which prompts you for the city you'd like. Haven't used it in a long time ( seriously who would when you can search the internet on your smartphone? ) but I think it's the same service as 411 minus the $X/min fee (the…
The area-555-1212 one actually is the most expensive at $3.50 according to Wikipedia [1]. There is toll-free directory assistance (it doesn't say what number) from AT&T, where the 800-number owner pays for any lookups.
Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#9http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/555_%28telephone_number%29 Much more interesting (from a hacker's perspective) were all the telco services provided using specific exchanges. For any given ILEC there was an exchange used for services provided to customers or employees, including everything from phone testing services and remote terminal access to business customer information and voicemail. By calling these numbers you c…
As a kid I remember these numbers we would call up and hear a bunch of other kids faintly having conversations in the background (and you could join in). Was many years ago perhaps someone else could fill in the details if they remember exactly.
Re: Not every U.S. telephone number beginning with 555 is fake
#10Slight correction needed to the article: Mexico left the NANP in the late 90s and has adopted its own country code and dialing plan. It hasn't changed much since but you do need to use 011 and whatever code it is now to dial there.