The following is a transcript of John Dvorak's column in the Sunday October 7 issue of the San Francisco Examiner-Chronicle. It will turn into an embarrassment for everyone. Somehow, somebody posted a telephone calling card number on his system. Basically, anyone hooked into a computerized community bulletin board can post messages that can be read by others on the system. All it takes is a home computer coupled to a modem, which links the computer to the telephone line, and the password.
State law prohibits board users from posting telephone credit card numbers and calling card numbers.
In fact, it's a felony if someone posts a number on your bulletin board because it's considered a conspiracy. If you're the operator of the board and you post the number yourself, it's only a misdemeanor. You don't even have to know who posted the number to be charged with a felony. That's what happened to Tcimpidis, or so it seemed. The L.A. Times, L.A. Herald-Examiner, InfoWorld, the Associated Press have written stories.