The Backyard Phreaker

by D-Recz

For those of you who live in the suburbs or small towns, did you ever wonder, "Hmm, there must be more controlling my phone than the 5"x10"x3" box on the outside of my house.?"  Well, right you are.

However, the box controlling your (and all the other people in your hood's) phones is not behind locked doors.  It is usually on an accessible street, not more than a few feet from the curb.  Look for the big telco box, it usually has the telco name on it and sticks up a good four feet from the ground.  This is the neighborhood telco box.

Now, one would think, "This box which controls all telecommunication in the area must be under lock and key, right?"  Wrong.

Your local telco thinks your lines should have no more protection than an odd-shaped bolt.  This can be undone with a special wrench, or with needle-nose pliers.  Unless you happen to look a lot like a telco serviceman, breaking into one of these boxes might look a little suspicious, so don't be a damn fool.  So much of hacking/phreaking is just common sense.  A modicum of discreetness can save you hours of dealing with local police officers.

Once the box is open (it was already unlocked, I just opened it out of curiosity, officer) you will feel right at home.  The same kind of setup you have at home (black wire/red wire, sometimes a jack) is present here, forty-fold.  These are all your neighbors' phone connections.  Unplug one of those jacks, poof there goes Joe Blow's line.  Connect your handset to a pair of terminals, and you have access to this phone line.  Child's play.

This system is easy to phreak, but easier to destroy.  Should one be so motivated, one could, say, rip out all the wires and run.  This would cause havoc among your neighbors, and certainly make you far less popular with the locals.  So, for the sake of people who didn't do anything to you, please don't go randomly ruining service for a whole district because you can.

However, people tend to get a little nervous when their phones suddenly go dead.  And, if you are caught, the redial on your handset can be used against you.  So, for the backyard/suburban phreaker, here is a list of handy tools you can use as a "safety net," to ensure Officer Friendly doesn't suddenly come around the corner.

1.)  Line in use light - They sell these at RadioShack for $12.00.  This is a little box with a light on it - when the light is on, the line is in use.  Before utilizing a random line, check yourself with this pocket-sized insurance device.  Makes a great gift.  (Humor)

2.)  Tone dialer without redial or memory - Should you be caught after the fact, won't you feel like a dumbshit if the last number called on the line you phreaked is the number that pops up when "redial" is pressed on your phone?  A tone dialer prevents all this.  Since the phone only remembers the numbers pressed on the phone keypad, you'd be smart to do all your dialing with a tone dialer, sans redial or memory settings.  Although laws are so vague that you can now practically be arrested for having a phone and alligator clips, it's better for you if they can't prove anything.  Dial with a tone dialer, you play it safe.  Dial direct - too bad, so sad, you're on your own.

3.)  Common sense - O.K., for all you non-geniuses, first and foremost - Don't dial lines connected to you in any way!  That means don't dial your house, your cell phone, your pager, your girlfriend, your favorite BBS, your mom, your boss, or any numbers dialed a lot by your home phone.  You've been warned, they do keep records.  Secondly, clean up after yourself.  Wearing latex gloves would be a good idea, but not leaving business cards also helps out.

In conclusion, you weren't there, and you should do everything in your power to make it seem that way.  That means closing the box after you're done.  "Holy shit, where are my car keys?" is simply not acceptable.  Keep your head about you, don't do anything stupid, and watch your back, and you can have hours of fone-phun in your gated community.  Act like a moron and get your ass thrown in the metal clink.

Happy phreaking.

Don't tell anyone I told you so.

I do not, in any way, encourage criminal behavior, nor do I promote destruction of telephone company property.  I also do not condone or encourage the activities listed above, nor have I or anyone I know even performed the acts mentioned above.  Please: Don't f*ck with people.