The FIREWALL CHIP. U're phone always offhook?

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         THE FIREWALL CHIP!  U'RE PHONE ALWAYS OFFHOOK?

   We have potential bugging devices in all our houses - The telephone!
Of course, when it is onhook, the microphone does not transmit... or
does it? Would the phone have to be rewired to render it always
"offhook" or would it be an operation at the central phone company?
If the present models would have to be rewired, then how about future
models? Much function is done thru chips & so could many of the models
on the current market be remote programmable? See the latest issue of
Mondo 2000.

   This problem demands a hardware solution. How about an adapter module
between microphone & the rest of phone?

                     THE FIREWALL CHIP

   The Clipper chip architecture was secret! Cypherpunks demand source
code with their security software! How about a demand for the "visable"
chip. That is - a chip with a known architecture - that can be tested
for integrity & is a general computer chip for doing software
operations & for doing i/o with electronic devices? With our property
being loaded up with sophisticated "trust me" electronics, it may be
necessary to have a general electronic "FIREWALL CHIP".

   The FIREWALL CHIP could have its applications software supplied by
various companies which would specialize in fields for
detecting electronic intrusion. Some specializing in phone audio, others
in vision telephones, cell phone tracking, & many others to be
considered.

   The FIREWALL CHIP will be a future necessity. It & its software
suppliers will probably constitute an outlaw industry.

                                         PUSH EM BACK! PUSH EM BACK!
                                         WWWAAAYYY  BBBAAACCCK!
                                         BBBEEEAAATTTT  STATE!

                                         Gary Jeffers
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>    We have potential bugging devices in all our houses - The telephone!
> Of course, when it is onhook, the microphone does not transmit... or
> does it? Would the phone have to be rewired to render it always
> "offhook" or would it be an operation at the central phone company?
> If the present models would have to be rewired, then how about future
> models? Much function is done thru chips & so could many of the models
> on the current market be remote programmable? See the latest issue of
> Mondo 2000.

The Mondo article ("Total Surveillance" by Charles Ostman) was a joke.
Among other things, he claims the Teledesic project is a massive
satellite surveilance scheme.  Those birds are going to be in
geo-synchronous orbit!  What's more, even a LEO spy-sat weighs many
tons.  Nobody could launch 840 satellites of that weight without being
noticed.

From the innacuracies in what I do know about, I assume all of the
phone-paranoia is also unjustified.

On Thu, 2 Feb 1995, Gary Jeffers wrote:

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> 
>          THE FIREWALL CHIP!  U'RE PHONE ALWAYS OFFHOOK?
> 
>    We have potential bugging devices in all our houses - The telephone!
> Of course, when it is onhook, the microphone does not transmit... or
> does it? Would the phone have to be rewired to render it always
> "offhook" or would it be an operation at the central phone company?
> If the present models would have to be rewired, then how about future
> models? Much function is done thru chips & so could many of the models
> on the current market be remote programmable? See the latest issue of
> Mondo 2000.

Use an encrypted cordless phone.  When its not in use, take the battery 
out of the phone.  As long as the model you own doens't have a speaker 
phone you're cool.

If you start thinking that all phones that you buy have other hidden 
mikes in them, then I start wondering about paranoia.

Ben.