FI2: The Invisible Answering Machine by Lazarus Long
Freedom Issue 2, February 28, 1993
File 5/7
The Invisible Answering Machine User Guide
by Lazarus Long
EDITORS NOTE: The Invisible Answering machine is essentially a VMB service offered by MTS (Manitoba Telephone System). If it is implemented on your line, after approximately 3 rings, the caller is transferred to the VMB.
Call answer is a service that acts like an invisible answering machine. It will answer your calls when you are away from home or too busy to answer a call. By following this guide and listening to the system's friendly and simple prompts, Call Answer is easy to use.
The system will ask you to use symbols on your touch tone phone such as: STAR *, and POUND #. You'll find a quick reference card on the inside back cover. Remove this card and keep it near your phone to help you use the system.
Initial start up: Dial the Call Answer access number for Residential customers - 783-CALL (2255). Voice prompts will then ask you to complete the following steps:
- Enter your temporary password - your telephone number will act as the temporary password until you create a new one.
- The system will prompt you to change your temporary password to your own personal password. Your personal password must be between 6 and 15 digits and cannot begin with 0 (zero). For security reasons, CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD TO ONE THAT'S EASY FOR YOU TO REMEMBER BUT HARD FOR SOMEONE ELSE TO GUESS.
The system will prompt you to record your name and select a greeting: press 1 for standard greeting, or 2 for personal greeting. Then press 1 1, to review them.
Listening to your messages from your telephone: From a touch tone phone, dial the Call Answer access number 783-CALL. Enter your password (if calling from another phone you will have to enter your phone number first) and press:
- 1 1 to listen to new messages
- 1 to listen to all messages
After you have listened to your messages you can press:
- 4 to replay message
- 7 to erase the message
- 9 to save the message
Listening to messages from another mailbox: dial the Call Answer access number, press *, then enter your mailbox number. Enter your password.
NOTE: Long Distance charges will apply if you are calling from outside your local calling area.
Personal options: (press 4 from main menu) A number of Call Answer options can be personalized. From the Personal Options you may press:
- 1 Message waiting - this is the intermittent dial tone you hear when there is a message waiting. It can be turned on, or off.
- 2 Administrative options - allows you to change your password.
- 3 Greetings - allows you to change your greeting or recorded name as often as you like.
Enhanced Call Answer Features: (available for and additional low monthly rate). Message Notification (Outcall), can be programmed to call out to a pager, cellular telephone or alternative telephone to inform you that a message has been received in your mail box. Press:
- 4 for Personal Options
- 4 for notification schedule
- 1 for first schedule (use this schedule for display pagers)
- 2 for second schedule
- 3 for temporary schedule
You will now be guided through a series of prompts which will assist you in creating or modifying your message notification schedule. After you have completed your schedules and are back in Personal Options, Press * to exit.
Family/Extension mail boxes: Call Answer Family/Extension mail box allows members of your family to receive messages separately with their own personal password. This service allows for one host and three extensions mail boxes. Each represents one individual within your household. Extensions can be added or deleted as required by the host. To set up a Family/Extension mail box press:
- 4 for Personal Options
- 9 for Extension mail box
Enter the number for the extension you want to add or delete. Call Answer will automatically assign a password. If you wish, you may change the password. Remember, it must consist of 6 to 15 digits, and must not start with 0 (zero). Then record your name. To find out who a message is for press 0. Call Answer will tell you the number of new and saved messages in each mail box. To send a message to another extension: listen to the entire message then press:
- 6 for forward message, and record your comments.
- # then enter the extension number of the person to whom you wish to send the messages.
- # your message will be sent.
- * to exit.
For more information please call: 941-7061 in Winnipeg or visit your local MTS Phone Center.
MAIN PLAYBACK CONTROLS SPECIAL KEYS
1 1 2 3 * *
Listen Rewind Pause Forward Cancel Cancel/Exit
4 4 5 6 0 0
Pers. Opt. Slower Env.Info Faster Help Help
5 7 8 9 # #
Restart Volume Louder Skip Skip/Complete
*
Exit
Comments: For those of you wondering, you don't have to call the owners number to get at the VMB. You can call the service and do whatever you have planned. However, this doesn't look very useful to be hacking into, but I really know very little about the actual hacking. Perhaps the weakness is in finding a box before someone has changed their password. Still, they will eventually get MTS to do something about it OR cancel the service. The other weakness might be in finding someone with the extension service and creating a new box, BUT I am pretty sure that the owner knows about the extensions even if he can't get to them (because of your password), so again he will get MTS to do something about it. Even though the hacking potential is slim you might want to fuck around with the system, change messages etc., but that of course is just mischievous. If you found one with Outcall I wonder if you could somehow use that to your advantage. If not you could surely cause havoc with someone's beeper/cellular (ie. schedule it to call him/her at 2:00 am and whatnot), but again that is just mischief. Also, when calling you only have two tries at getting a number with the service. On the third try it says "sorry you are having problems, an operator will be with you in a moment". At this point pressing * to exit has no effect. Hang up. I don't know how many tries you get at guessing passwords. I have entered two and then used my proper one. One more thing, if you do somehow get an extension box you will want to disable the intermittent dial tone function on the main box. This will just delay them from discovering you though. The thing about this system is that people pay a monthly rate for it so you aren't likely to find any "unused" boxes.
I'd be interested to hear from anyone about any "experiments" with this system.
LAZ.
