Deaf Relay Ops

[Tachyon]

Yeah, a friend and I were using a deaf relay operator off a payphone, when all of a sudden juring one of our innocent calls, we where informed this number could be reported to the authorities, what could become of this? This happened in canada btw.


MattGSX: moved because it should be it's own topic. Please don't make me do it again.

[MattGSX]

You were using a terminal off the payphone, or are you just trying to be humorous?

Though a deaf relay op is obligated to not interfere with a call, I'm pretty sure they COULD report harassment on a terminal. You should be fine as long as you don't go back there and as long as you didn't give out any private info on the call, though I'm not sure if they could give that out anyway.

If you were to get busted, you could be charged with harassment (maybe), and the relay company may be able to press a civil charge for abuse of services, but I don't know if either would stick. The only person I know who got hit with something like that sent a bomb threat via IP-tty from a school computer lab to the school.

[Tachyon]

Nah we were pranking some local pimps and a McDonalds manager with a portable TTY unit I got off ebay. We later went to another payphone and called the non-emergency police line and the cop said we'd get a slap on the wrist and be told not to do it again nicely.

[murd0c]

Nah we were pranking some local pimps and a McDonalds manager with a portable TTY unit I got off ebay. We later went to another payphone and called the non-emergency police line and the cop said we'd get a slap on the wrist and be told not to do it again nicely.

You are a fucking idiot.

[Tachyon]

How's that?

[Nod]

Nah we were pranking some local pimps and a McDonalds manager with a portable TTY unit I got off ebay. We later went to another payphone and called the non-emergency police line and the cop said we'd get a slap on the wrist and be told not to do it again nicely.

You are a fucking idiot.

How's that?

Because you just don't fuck with pimps. You're gonna pimp slapped bitch.


edit- Fixed my img code.

[murd0c]

Pretty much. You'll get a double dose of pimp slappin'.

[Nod]

Get pimp slapped with the baby powder.

<off topic>Does anyone have any images of B. Powder from How High? I couldn't find any. Neither could six chacha guides.</off topic>

[Tachyon]

These pimps were pretty lame, and weren't even very funny.

[mr_doc]

Of all the times the relay ops have threatened to report my ip or report my activities I haven't heard a peep from my ISP*.
One relay op hijacked my call once by disconnecting the person I called, and having the conversation with me himself pretending to be the other person before telling me I was going to be reported.

My verdict: totally worth it

Edit: I haven't heard from them about relay op use that is. They've bitched about bittorrent seeding of games and movies and portscanning

[Tachyon]

I was actually pretty pissed off at that smartass relay operator though. I mean, if I was a real deaf person, what the hell right do they have to report me for gangsta rapping? I thought they were supposed to be a totally transparent relay, and therefore can't report me even if I discuss blatantly illegal things...apparently not though, at least here.

[MattGSX]

It's very difficult, because most relay companies have a policy of not interfering with calls for that very reason, but they are technically breaking ethical codes by being part of a conspiracy to commit crimes. It's kind of a sticky situation, but i'm guessing that unless you talk about bombing somewhere or assassinating someone important they won't do anything.

And I've been interrogated by federal agents about this, so I know for a fact that relay ops have no problem rolling over on bomb threats.

[Tachyon]

Yeah I see your point. I'm no psycho and wasn't doing the lameass old bomb threat thing (I don't find it that funny), about the closest thing to that we did was call up a straight-edge co-worker and cussed him out for not paying Tony for the cocaine last week, but they let us make a few more calls that weren't nearly so bad before telling us they'd ratted us to the cops.

[I-baLL]

I don't know if anybody remembers this but a couple of years ago Sprint Relay started threatening pranksters by saying that they will pass on the prankster's IP addresses to the Department of Homeland Security. It was a very weird situation cause it wasn't just one relay op who would say that to you but all of  them. Sometimes they'd say that after you only typed in one word. I once got that threat by starting my TTY conversation with the phrase "My balls are itchy."

[MattGSX]

I remember that too. the rumor floating around is that the FCC was sick of subsidizing money to IP-TTD/TTY providers since there was such a large amount of pranking and crime (setting up drug deals, threats, etc) done on the lines. I think the phone companies were afraid of losing that federal funding unless they cracked down on the pranking problem.

That's, at least, what I heard from a friend's mom, and I believe her only because she has worked as a relay op and I assume she still knows some of them in our area.