How would I hack your voicemail?

[Globalti]

I would need to know your access code. Admittedly some people may have simple codes like 0000 or 1234, which are easy to find by trying all the likely combinations. Presumably once discovered, the access code and phone number for a celeb can change hands for quite large sums of money?

 

[dodgy]

It's not just about PINs and access codes, there are several other ways. Most if not all have been closed by the telcos. Like most 'hacking' cases in the meeja, the hows are seldom reported accurately. So your average joe public thinks we have journalists that also seem to be competent hackers.

 

[tyred]

There are ways and means of getting through the security measure, depending on the vm system used. I work in the telecoms industry programming phone and vm systems and it's a common request to get into a mailbox where people have forgotten the code. I've heard some interesting things on people's vm...

 

[martint235]

I would 99% of the "hacking" that went on was just using the default code. Because most people dial their voicemail from their handset, very few are aware that this is a code at all.

It's a little bit annoying that this has been reported by the media in such a way as to suggest the "hackers" used intelligence and skill. We're hardly talking Wargames levels of hacking ability here.

 

[swee'pea99]

Reminds me of a book I read by a physicist called Feynman who used to work in top secret stuff for the US military in which he described how when he had a difficult problem to solve, he'd think about it hard, then 'leave it to simmer' for a while - and in the meantime, to keep the rest of his brain ticking over, and just for fun, he took to safecracking. In the course of which he discovered among other things that of the very large and very complex and very expensive safes in the building - the ones containing the very very very secret paperwork - about a quarter still had the default combination with which they were shipped from the factory. Almost all the others were set to some really uncrackable code such as the owner's date of birth or home phone number. Barely 20% had anything resembling real security - ie, remained uncracked after he'd been at it for ten minutes or so.

 

[SavageHoutkop]

I've not been following the finer details of the hacking saga, but how many people really have information 'worth knowing' on their voicemails in any case?
Normally it's 'call me, thanks' or something, no? Or were they hanging on for the long sad drunken break up voicemail message?

 

[Lisa21]

To be honest, I can hardly be bothered to check my own voicemails most of the time....not unless im waiting for something important, so I sure as fleas couldnt be bothered to check someone elses

 

[machew]

A few years ago you could programme some phones to display any outgoing number when you made a call.
If you changed the outgoing number to a mobile number, then dialled the number of the voicemail system, on orange that was 123. You would then go into voicemail mode and not need any pin codes

 

[ColinJ]

I can guarantee that nobody can hack into my voicemail - I disabled it!

I got fed up of being out on forum rides (pretty much the only time that I carry my phone) and somebody always ringing me, usually when I was in traffic or halfway up a steep climb. The phone would go to voicemail after 6 rings which was never long enough for me to stop my bike, get the phone out and answer it. I'd then have to pay to go to voicemail, go through the menus and pick up the message which was usually something stupid like "Sorry, I'll ring you later" or "It doesn't matter - it wasn't important"!

 

[ufkacbln]

Remember the Bic pen / lock disaster?

This was where it was shown that some locks were opened by the expediency of inserting a Bic pen and twisting

Allegedly the same was true of the key operated switches launching ICBMs

 

[lozcs]

Reminds me of a book I read by a physicist called Feynman who used to work in top secret stuff for the US military in which he described how when he had a difficult problem to solve, he'd think about it hard, then 'leave it to simmer' for a while - and in the meantime, to keep the rest of his brain ticking over, and just for fun, he took to safecracking. In the course of which he discovered among other things that of the very large and very complex and very expensive safes in the building - the ones containing the very very very secret paperwork - about a quarter still had the default combination with which they were shipped from the factory. Almost all the others were set to some really uncrackable code such as the owner's date of birth or home phone number. Barely 20% had anything resembling real security - ie, remained uncracked after he'd been at it for ten minutes or so.

Surely you're joking? Great book....