Kenneth_R_Jongsma@cup.portal.com (10/09/89)
In a large article that I will attempt to sumarize, this week's Communication Week reports that a PA Judge has ruled that some CLASS features are illegal under the states wiretap laws. The judge ruled that premise devices that display the caller's number constitutes a "trap and trace device" described and prohibited by the state's Wiretap Act. A "trap and trace device" is defined by the Act as "a device which captures the incoming electronic or other impulses which identify the originating number of an instrument or device from which a wire or electronic communication was transmitted." The judge ruled that to make the service legal, Bell Atlantic would have to allow subscribers the right to block their number _on a per call basis_. Bell Atlantic was not going to do this, rather relying on bill inserts and advertising to make consumers aware of the potential use of their number. Interestingly enough, the judge also questioned some other CLASS services and said that they should be investigated. One example he gave was the Return Call service, where a subscriber could call the last person that called him/her by pressing a code. This without knowing the number being called. The judge said that combining this service with optional local service detailed billing would reveal the callers number when the bill finally arrived a few weeks later. ken@cup.portal.com [Moderator's Note: What the judge does not seem to realize is that lots of information is available when acquired *through billing channels* instead of simply asking for other reasons. Did you ever wonder who a non-pub number belonged to, and you could not get the information on it? Call it via your calling card, or through third number billing, or with other operator assistance. When the billing comes, *challenge it* at the business office. "Who is this I am supposed to have called?"...."Do you know John Smith, at 123 Main Street?"......"oh, is that who it was? Thanks, m'am... yes, I will pay for it." PT]