Flying restart

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An interception circuit is colloquially understood as the identification of anonymous callers by means of a special switching-related performance feature . In the course of the complete digitization of the telephone network, however, the term is now outdated and is therefore no longer used in specialist circles for existing telephone networks. One speaks here of the Malicious Call Identification ( MCID ) feature or the identification of malicious callers. The way the identification works today differs significantly from the older technology of the interception circuit, formerly also known as interception .

history

Interception circuit to identify a caller until the 1980s
Air-termination on the line selector until the 1970s

In the 1970s, with the appearance of the first fully electronic switching systems, the possibility of interception circuit was gradually introduced across the board. An interception circuit was a technical device for tracing a telephone call to determine the identity of the caller. At that time there was no technical possibility of transferring the caller's number to the called party and displaying it there. If you wanted to find an anonymous caller, the only practicable option was the interception circuit.

With the even older technology of the self-dialing device , the identification of malicious callers only made sense within a local area network and could be circumvented by dialing your own area code .

Procedure before using the flying restart circuit (self-selection device)

  • Officials in the exchange had to read on the last dialer (line selector) in front of the called connection on which line the call came.
  • The officers then had to work their way backwards from dialing machine to dialing machine through the line (from rack row to rack row in the exchange) to the selection or call finder of the calling connection.
  • For long-distance calls, they had to call the exchange in the call setup. The above procedure continued there, in Germany over up to four switching levels. However, if the caller hung up prematurely, the automatic dialing device would revert to its basic position. At least for long-distance calls, localization was almost impossible because the appropriate personnel could not always be available in all switching centers.
  • If the calling connection could finally be determined, the caller had to be determined from extensive lists in files about the assignment between connection and subscriber. A quick and thus successful identification of a malicious caller was therefore more than questionable.

Procedure for the flying restart (no longer in use)

  • When there was an existing call, the person called dialed the so-called catch number (at the Bundespost the 2)
  • A signal - an inaudible tone, similar to the charge pulse - was transmitted backwards over the active line, signaling the selection of the calling line not to terminate the connection.
  • This means that even after the caller hung up, his line remained busy and the line switched through, all automatic dialing machines (including old self-dialing devices) remained in their switch position, the caller was trapped on the line and could not make any further calls.
  • Technicians were then able to retrace the line at their leisure, even if it took several hours. The use of the interception circuit made the identification of the malicious caller less personnel-intensive. At least disruptive callers from private lines could be identified quickly.

How it works and uses today

Since the digitization of the telephone network (at network level in the 1980s), the caller's number has been transmitted to the last exchange . However, switching-related performance features make it possible to suppress the transmission to the called party to a limited extent (except for emergency connections for the police, fire brigade and medical emergency services, see also CLIRO ).

With the Malicious Call Identification (MCID) switching service feature available today, the switching center saves the call number, time, date and duration of one or all incoming calls, even if the number is suppressed . The original performance feature interception circuit is no longer available in its actual form (as an electronic device in the exchanges) for analog telephone networks in German-speaking countries. Third world countries now also have largely digitized telephone networks, so that the original technology of the interception circuit will soon have disappeared worldwide.

In today's digital cellular and landline telephone network, there are different versions of this feature. Depending on the nature of the offense, doorbell interferers and / or threatening and malicious callers, individual calls or all calls within a period of time can be logged.

Legal basis

The German Telecommunications Act spoke to 2003 still from a grabber. Today the legal basis for the provision and use of the feature can be found in § 101 TKG with a new terminology (→  MCID ). Since the end of 2007 advertising callers have had to show their phone number.

Since around 1990, telecommunication providers have been obliged to provide an individual billing statement on request at any time for transparency in billing . To do this, they must save all dial-up connections for a reasonable time. In the event of criminal offenses (continued harassment or threat ), such data can also be used by the investigative authorities to identify anonymous callers.

Legends

In feature films and television programs, especially from the crime genre , the interception circuit is often used to create tension and drama, as the viewer is told that a certain amount of time (e.g. 30 seconds) is necessary to identify the caller. In fact, this was a thing of the past with the availability of the flying restart circuit . This portrayal was possibly correct in even older films, for example in the episodes of the crime production Stahlnetz .

literature

Web links

Wiktionary: Snap circuit  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations