EVERYBODY IS TALKING ABOUT THE PLA
If only they’d start talking nice…
Here are a few miscellanous mentions we’ve gotten on websites and in the press. We have another similar page of newspaper and magazine clippings which is here. One of these days we’ll probably combine the two pages.
4/6/2000: Two more sites get hacked and the hacker lists only our URL at the end of the page which causes quite a surge in our hits. The two sites are www.kkk.com and www.whitepower.com – the hacker put up an anti-biggotry message and had a sound clip of Martin Luther King Jr’s famous speech. I bet those skinheads were really amused! Thanks once again to Jolly Spamhead for pointing this one out. Hmmmm, how does Jolly Spamhead find these hacked sites so quickly. HMMMMMMMMM.
3/20/2000: A good samaritan decided to hack a couple of commercial web sites and they were nice enough to throw our name and URL on the page after their friendly “LEARN TO SECURE A SITE OR STOP SELLING NUTZ!!!” message. The hacked sites were www.walltowallnuts.com and armsportinc.com. Thanks to Jolly Spamhead for the heads up.
AntiOnline’s Weekly Mailbag on 12/19/99 had a question about the PLA and it appears that they don’t think too much of us. Here’s the letter and it’s response:
Recently I stumbled upon the site www.phonelosers.org and listened to some of the calls.
I find it so interesting on how they did some of their things (conference calls, taping lines,,,,the phreaking stuff) — Now your site it seems (after watching it for a long time) rarely talks about this part in this world of knowledge…I don’t have any plans of phreaking because of the consequences but I’m very interested in the hows… was wondering if you had and good site listings or info from collen card, el jefe or that group…that isn’t outdated…
Thank You for the service you provide -Bob Shaggit
antionline’s answer:Well, what they do isn’t exactly security related for the most part. To learn more about the “hows” of what they do, go to altavista and search for “how to be an asshole”. You’re bound to find a site which gives insights into their techniques. If you’re interested in some of the history of “phreaking”, you may want to check out our Phreaking Box Archive.
Userfriendly.org Link of the Day – Oct 26, 1999: When good support goes bad: I’m truly surprised there hasn’t been a Fox special about this already. This site isn’t like your typical “tech support sucks” site. It chronicles what happens when tech support workers become truly disgruntled – they start being annoying right back to the customer. Makes for some interesting listening. Thanks to RBCP for today’s link.
WebSkulker Newsletter – Monday November 1, 1999
Skulking a tech support number
http://www.phonelosers.org/techsupport
If the above tech support sites don’t help and you need to call the support phone number for a product, you had better hope that you are getting through to the number you wanted. The people at phonelosers.org once managed to hijack the tech support number for a company and started answering the line themselves in various prank styles. The above link lets you listen to the results.
6/21/99
6/9/99
Review by The Net magazine: November, 1996
Apparently inspired by a guy who dabbles in illicit phone codes and credit card fraud, Phone Losers of America takes as its premise the fact that symbols of communication authority should be made fun of: Ma Bell, AOL, and Bill Gates. There’s a Prank Phone Call page with sound bites of choice harassment, reviews of recordings of more prank calls, extensive links to phone and bad attitude-related sites. Also, an anti-award page. Self mocking we-are-proud-to-be-phone-losers humor throughout. To hear the site’s ringleader, Redbox Chilipepper tell it, “everyone’s talking about PLA. If only they were saying something nice.”
Overall Rating:15 out of 18
I found this review of PLA on excite.com, listing our old blitzinfo.com account.
Phone Losers of America They’re phone hackers and proud of it. Back issues of PLA are archived here (kind of like 2600 but more phone-oriented), plus a list of anti-AOL pages, and the convoluted history of these folks. Note: Do NOT get them mad at you.
Here’s a letter we got after copying the USA Today homepage graphics and using them on our main page.
I am the marketing manager for USA TODAY Online and am responsible for
policing online use of the USA TODAY logo. Your page,
http://www.phonelosers.org/, uses the USA TODAY logo and weather map without our permission. Please immediately remove both elements from this screen. If these elements are still online on Monday, October 27, we will send this notice to our legal department. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Review by Internet Underground: August 1996
How to turn the work life of a 7-11 employee into a living hell
The author of this site used his experiences working at dozens of convenience stores and gas stations to compile the definitive how-to list of annoying the underpaid staffs of the quick-stop shopping world. Among his helpful suggestions: “Jam the handle on the Slurpee/Slushie/Whatever machine so that the mush keeps on flowing after you leave. Watch the cashier cry when he finds it.” He also suggests calling up cashiers and asking questions such as, “So, are you working there alone? How much money do you have in the cash register right now? Do you have one of those silent alarms behind the counter? Do the cops respond quickly in your area?” Other fun subcategories include “How to Survive the Graveyard Shift,” “Screwing Your Store Out of Millions of Dollars” and “Proven Ways to Get Yourself Shot.” A sample tidbit from the latter category: “Pick up the phone and dial 911. Tell the police what’s happening as you take your time putting the robber’s money into a paper bag. If he gets mad, tell him, “Shhhhhhhh! I’m on the phone!”
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