Phone Phreaks - how they did it

[random guy]

First of all, Ive made this topic purely for my own amusement - because its 8 AM and I've been up since 6 after only getting 4 hours sleep, and I'm annoyed but can't sleep, so I need something to occupy myself, and this is it. I also made this topic because when I tried to explain this in the mIRC room I got called a geek, and thought that was funny, so this topic is also to annoy k'dash, weirdzangiege, disoblige, ash and taratata.

Lately because I've been on holidays and my time's been my own, I've been reading up about the origin of hackers and stuff like that. Mainly i've been interested in "phone phreaking" which was the process of getting free calls. Before you get excited, this wouldn't work these days, unless your local phone company still uses technology from 20 years ago.

So, yeah, I'm going to expain how that process worked.

Okay, to explain how this process worked, I need to first explain how the phones used to work. Basically, the entire world used to be (well still is but they use different technology now) filled with relay stations which connect one user to another by dialing the tones that were used when the numbers were dialed. So, if I wanted to call from point a to point b,

 

[point a]-[relay station]-------[relay station]-[point b]

 

The relay station near my end would take the numbers i dialed in and send them to the relay station near point b's end, which would then connect me to point b.

Now, the way these relay stations used to communicate was by sending out a tone that was exactly 2600 cycles per second. This was to let other relay stations know that it was open for business, and ready to service user requests. When they were connected, the tone would stop sounding, signalling that they were in use.

But when the phone lines were first installed, the phone company made a fatal flaw - to save money they made it so that these relay stations sent and recieved signals on the same frequency. What this meant was that people could exploit the system - and here is how.

 

[point a]-[RS]-------[freecall number{point C}/RS]-------[RS]-[point B]

 

The way a phone phreak would make a free call was to first dial a freecall (800) number. The relay station responsible for forwarding the freecall numbers would stop signalling at 2600rps and be silent, waiting to accept the number. BUT, before the number could be sent, the phone phreak would send out his OWN 2600rps signal, which fooled relay point C into thinking the caller had hung up. But as soon as the 2600rps tone stopped, the machine thought that it must have a NEW customer, and faithfully waited for the new number. Then phone phreaks would use their "blue boxes" (which were used to imitate the tones the phones used to send out to relay stations when numbers were dialed) to input the correct codes for the number at point B, and the phone at point B would ring. However, because there was only one phone call registered at point a, and it was a freecall number which, naturally, didn't show up on the bill, a call to anywhere in the world could be made for free!

IF you want to read more about this, this site is a good place to start http://www.webcrunchers.com/crunch/. It's a site full of the personal experiences of the man credited for designing the first blue box, AND figuring out that a whistle given away for free in the "captain crunch" cereal made the perfect 2600rps tone to be used in phone phreaking (hence the nickname).

[Rag]

geek

[Weirdy]

........ zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Agozer]

I just can't focus on that mass of text...Can someone summarize it in 2 sentences?

[Rag]

I just can't focus on that mass of text...Can someone summarize it in 2 sentences?

yes, I can summarize it in one word. GEEK

[taratata]

I just can't focus on that mass of text...Can someone summarize it in 2 sentences?

That is basically the explaination of how a blue box works (an obsolete way of having free phone calls by "hacking" the phone company with a whistle).

[Agozer]

I just can't focus on that mass of text...Can someone summarize it in 2 sentences?

That is basically the explaination of how a blue box works (an obsolete way of having free phone calls by "hacking" the phone company with a whistle).

Ah yes, I've heard about this before. Thanks.

[Cominus]

First of all, Ive made this topic purely for my own amusement - because its 8 AM and I've been up since 6 after only getting 4 hours sleep, and I'm annoyed but can't sleep, so I need something to occupy myself, and this is it. I also made this topic because when I tried to explain this in the mIRC room I got called a geek, and thought that was funny, so this topic is also to annoy k'dash, weirdzangiege, disoblige, ash and taratata.

Lately because I've been on holidays and my time's been my own, I've been reading up about the origin of hackers and stuff like that. Mainly i've been interested in "phone phreaking" which was the process of getting free calls. Before you get excited, this wouldn't work these days, unless your local phone company still uses technology from 20 years ago.

So, yeah, I'm going to expain how that process worked.

Okay, to explain how this process worked, I need to first explain how the phones used to work. Basically, the entire world used to be (well still is but they use different technology now) filled with relay stations which connect one user to another by dialing the tones that were used when the numbers were dialed. So, if I wanted to call from point a to point b,

 

[point a]-[relay station]-------[relay station]-[point b]

 

The relay station near my end would take the numbers i dialed in and send them to the relay station near point b's end, which would then connect me to point b.

Now, the way these relay stations used to communicate was by sending out a tone that was exactly 2600 cycles per second. This was to let other relay stations know that it was open for business, and ready to service user requests. When they were connected, the tone would stop sounding, signalling that they were in use.

But when the phone lines were first installed, the phone company made a fatal flaw - to save money they made it so that these relay stations sent and recieved signals on the same frequency. What this meant was that people could exploit the system - and here is how.

 

[point a]-[RS]-------[freecall number{point C}/RS]-------[RS]-[point B]

 

The way a phone phreak would make a free call was to first dial a freecall (800) number. The relay station responsible for forwarding the freecall numbers would stop signalling at 2600rps and be silent, waiting to accept the number. BUT, before the number could be sent, the phone phreak would send out his OWN 2600rps signal, which fooled relay point C into thinking the caller had hung up. But as soon as the 2600rps tone stopped, the machine thought that it must have a NEW customer, and faithfully waited for the new number. Then phone phreaks would use their "blue boxes" (which were used to imitate the tones the phones used to send out to relay stations when numbers were dialed) to input the correct codes for the number at point B, and the phone at point B would ring. However, because there was only one phone call registered at point a, and it was a freecall number which, naturally, didn't show up on the bill, a call to anywhere in the world could be made for free!

IF you want to read more about this, this site is a good place to start http://www.webcrunchers.com/crunch/. It's a site full of the personal experiences of the man credited for designing the first blue box, AND figuring out that a whistle given away for free in the "captain crunch" cereal made the perfect 2600rps tone to be used in phone phreaking (hence the nickname).

What?! You couldn't include my name in your "list to annoy"? You know I probably hate you the most around here but you're just to big a jerk to include me in anything. Be'otch!

 

Yeah this thing is old, they gave a thing about that on the discovery channel a few years ago, did you read about the part about the whistle that came as a toy in the captain crunch cereal box?

 

p.s. you're a geek.

[random guy]

First of all, Ive made this topic purely for my own amusement - because its 8 AM and I've been up since 6 after only getting 4 hours sleep, and I'm annoyed but can't sleep, so I need something to occupy myself, and this is it. I also made this topic because when I tried to explain this in the mIRC room I got called a geek, and thought that was funny, so this topic is also to annoy k'dash, weirdzangiege, disoblige, ash and taratata.

Lately because I've been on holidays and my time's been my own, I've been reading up about the origin of hackers and stuff like that. Mainly i've been interested in "phone phreaking" which was the process of getting free calls. Before you get excited, this wouldn't work these days, unless your local phone company still uses technology from 20 years ago.

So, yeah, I'm going to expain how that process worked.

Okay, to explain how this process worked, I need to first explain how the phones used to work. Basically, the entire world used to be (well still is but they use different technology now) filled with relay stations which connect one user to another by dialing the tones that were used when the numbers were dialed. So, if I wanted to call from point a to point b,

 

[point a]-[relay station]-------[relay station]-[point b]

 

The relay station near my end would take the numbers i dialed in and send them to the relay station near point b's end, which would then connect me to point b.

Now, the way these relay stations used to communicate was by sending out a tone that was exactly 2600 cycles per second. This was to let other relay stations know that it was open for business, and ready to service user requests. When they were connected, the tone would stop sounding, signalling that they were in use.

But when the phone lines were first installed, the phone company made a fatal flaw - to save money they made it so that these relay stations sent and recieved signals on the same frequency. What this meant was that people could exploit the system - and here is how.

 

[point a]-[RS]-------[freecall number{point C}/RS]-------[RS]-[point B]

 

The way a phone phreak would make a free call was to first dial a freecall (800) number. The relay station responsible for forwarding the freecall numbers would stop signalling at 2600rps and be silent, waiting to accept the number. BUT, before the number could be sent, the phone phreak would send out his OWN 2600rps signal, which fooled relay point C into thinking the caller had hung up. But as soon as the 2600rps tone stopped, the machine thought that it must have a NEW customer, and faithfully waited for the new number. Then phone phreaks would use their "blue boxes" (which were used to imitate the tones the phones used to send out to relay stations when numbers were dialed) to input the correct codes for the number at point B, and the phone at point B would ring. However, because there was only one phone call registered at point a, and it was a freecall number which, naturally, didn't show up on the bill, a call to anywhere in the world could be made for free!

IF you want to read more about this, this site is a good place to start http://www.webcrunchers.com/crunch/. It's a site full of the personal experiences of the man credited for designing the first blue box, AND figuring out that a whistle given away for free in the "captain crunch" cereal made the perfect 2600rps tone to be used in phone phreaking (hence the nickname).

What?! You couldn't include my name in your "list to annoy"? You know I probably hate you the most around here but you're just to big a jerk to include me in anything. Be'otch!

 

Yeah this thing is old, they gave a thing about that on the discovery channel a few years ago, did you read about the part about the whistle that came as a toy in the captain crunch cereal box?

 

p.s. you're a geek.

Well, that's kind of upsetting . I mean, we've had our differences, but I wouldn't say I hate you, I just disagree with your views on some things. That doesn't mean we can't be friends, or at least not enemies.

 

And anyway, the people up there I mentioned were the people I was talking to about this on the mIRC room - and they were telling me to shut up and who cares and stuff. THAT'S why I said I wrote this topic to annoy them, because I'd already attempted to explain this to them (and they showed absolutely no interest whatsoever).

[Weirdy]

I like Ice Cream

[Rag]

I like Ice Cream

Me too, chocolate flavor is good