News just in from the we-just-can’t-make-it-up department. It seems that even in cultures that shun modern technology you still find that high-tech crime (or hi-tec crime as it’s referred to in my chav-infested neighbourhood) goes on. James Bontrager, a 17 year old lad from Markesan, Wisconsin USA pleaded guilty to telecoms fraud after wiretapping his neighbour’s line and calling up relatives in Indiana.
He was fined US$367 and ordered to pay US$36.09 in long distance charges for his trouble. When confonted by a Deputy Sheriff he led him to a shed where he’d spliced into his neighbour’s phone line and brought it inside. The boy claimed that he didn’t know his neighbour would be charged for the calls, I didn’t know the Amish shunned 2600 magazine these days.
Like many of you, I had no idea that the Amish had beige-boxing tone-busting phantom phreaks amongst their numbers, especially after watching Kingpin. Still, if only he’d dialled up to the Internet, he could’ve learnt about the joys of WiFi and VoIP and saved himself a lot of trouble.
Phreaking in the 21st century? Odd, that…