Monthly News

Telstra Business Telephone System – Project Synergy Launch

FREE Installation of any Telstra LG Telephone system (capped at $1000) plus $99.00 for VOIP module to allow for $0 office to office or remote extension calls (conditions apply)

Offer from 1 August 2008 – 30 November 2008, with a nominated connection date before 31 December 2008.

$0 Standard Installation (capped at $1000) with purchase of a new Telstra Business Phone System (TBS) package either Key system or latest technology IP TBS IPECS Telephone system on a minimum 36 month contract for new Telstra Business customers or existing customers that have an existing TBS CPE-Carriage contract and wish to add another Telephone system.

ACCC alleges hidden contracts, misleading conduct in telecommunications

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has instituted proceedings in

the Federal Court of Australia against 28 parties, including telecommunications

companies and their related companies, finance companies and individuals, alleging

exclusive dealing (third line forcing) and misleading and deceptive conduct.

The bundled services deals business model (see below) to provide telecommunications

services and equipment is common in the telecommunications industry. The total dollar

value of such deals is estimated to be in the tens of millions. The deals target small

business.

The telecommunications and related companies named as respondents in the

proceedings are members of the Clear Communications, Axis Telecoms and WorldTel

groups and National Telecoms Group Pty Ltd. A complete list of the respondents and

their alleged conduct is attached.

It is alleged the telecommunications companies used a "bundled services deals"

business model. Under the deals the company would enter into a contract with a small

business to provide it with telecommunications services and call credits to cover

payments for what some customers thought was "free" equipment. Whereas, it is

alleged, the equipment was supplied to customers under rental agreements by finance

companies that were not related to the telecommunications companies.

The ACCC alleges that the bundled services arrangement is exclusive dealing, in breach

of section 47(6) of the Trade Practices Act 1974.

It is also alleged that in inducing the small businesses to enter into bundled services

deals, the telecommunications companies made some or all of the following

misrepresentations:

􀁺 the equipment provided under the deal is free

􀁺 total charges for telecommunications services will not exceed either a stated amount or the customers previous charges

􀁺 total charges under the bundled services deal will not exceed a specified amount per month

􀁺 the only contractual commitment being made by the customer is with the telecommunications company

􀁺 the price of calls will be lower than that of the customers existing provider

􀁺 fixed line services will be ported to the telecommunications company within a short period of time, and/or

􀁺 the telecommunications company will supply mobile services using the customers existing mobile carrier.

The ACCC alleges that statements of that type misled customers in breach of sections

52, 53(e) and 53(g) of the Trade Practices Act 1974 and/or sections 12DA(1), 12DB(1)

(e) and (12DB(1)(g) of the Australia Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001.

There has never been a better time to upgrade your business telephone system

Telstra has made it simple and easy for you to find the ideal communications solution for your business. A Telstra business system provides you with:

A monthly rebate on the cost of your calls

Monthly rebate of either 10%, 12% or 14% off eligible calls (depending on the plan chosen), which can be used to help offset the cost of your telephone system.

Breath of service $0 call rates from your office fixed line to your Telstra mobiles if you have 3 or more mobiles on your Telstra bill.

A single bill for your service to cut down on your administration

Receive one bill from Telstra that covers your calls, financing of your system, and your package add ons.

Face to Face expert advice and quality customer service

Expert advice from an accredited Telstra Dealer to tailor a Telstra business communication solution to suit your individual business communication needs.

One contact for all your after sales service

Single point of accountability for all of your communication queries and service requirements with Telstra Business Systems^TM Care.

Go to Assessment to forward details for obligation free Quote

Telephone System Hacking Fraud is happening, is your system secure?

The ability for other people to dial thru your telephone system may be possible (see explanation below).

There has been a significant increase in toll fraud happening in Australia in recent months where some Businesses have been charged Thousands of Dollars for telephone calls that other people fraudulantly made on their telephone lines. (recent instance of >$19K)

Special offer

Metro will check if this is possible on any LG-Nortel (Aria ) telephone system and limit the possibility of this occurring for a once off charge of $250.00 (inc) on small to medium systems or free of charge on any 2 year maintenance contract taken out. POA for larger systems.

Time Change on LG-Nortel or Aria Telephone systems

INSTRUCTIONS FOR LG ARIA LDK AND GDK TELEPHONE SYSTEMS CHANGING THE “TIME AND DATE”

STEP 1.. Identify which type of Aria system you have.

On any display handset press “Trans/Pgm” then dial “40” If the display shows the software version and country – go to LG ARIA GDK 16/20/20W/34e/100/162/186

If the display shows invalid hang up then press “Trans/Pgm then dial “72”

If the display shows software version and country –go to LG ARIA LDK 24/130/300/600

If display shows invalid – repeat STEP 1.

LG ARIA GDK 16/20/20W/34e/100/162/186

1. Find the attendant Telephone

To find the attendant Telephone dial “9” or “0” depending on the attendant code from more than one Telephone, the telephone that rings is the attendant Telephone.

2. From that attendant telephone Press “Trans/Pgm” #1.

3. Enter date & Time Enter as YYMMDDHHmm. (See note 1.)

4. Then press “Hold/Save” to save new Date & Time

LG ARIA LDK 24/130/300/600

1. Find the attendant Telephone

To find the attendant Telephone dial “9” or “0” depending on the attendant code from more than one Telephone, the telephone that rings is the attendant Telephone.

2. From the attendant telephone Press “Trans/Pgm” 041.

3. If Date is correct dial “ * ” Hold/Save

4. To change - Enter date as MMDDYY. (See note 1.)

5 Enter new time as HHmm then press Hold/Save to save new time.

Note 1 YY = Year 00-99, MM = Month 01-12, DD = Day 01-31,HH = Hour 00-23, mm = Minute 00-59.

The display may not change while entering digits and the Hold/save button may need to be pressed between after the date is entered before the time can be entered.

Telephone System Contract warning to small business

Small businesses should be wary of telecommunications contracts offering cheaper services combined with incentives such as phone equipment, laptops or plasma-screen TVs.
The TIO is receiving up to 20 complaints a week from small businesses who say they were misled about, or did not fully understand, the nature and operation of equipment leases bundled with telecommunication deals when they signed up to them. “Small businesses are telling us they are being approached by a sales person who offers a contract for call costs at the same price or less than what they are currently paying. They also say they were offered a handset, plasma TV, laptop or even an overseas holiday at ‘no extra cost’,” Deputy Ombudsman Simon Cleary said. “What small businesses sometimes don’t fully appreciate is that they are signing two separate contracts: one for the phone calls with a telecommunications service provider and the second being a lease of the equipment from a finance company.

Telephone Hacking or Toll Fraud – A Practical Guide

‘Telephone hacking’, ‘phreaking’, and ‘toll fraud’ are just a few names for unauthorised or fraudulent activities that can affect your telephone system. These types of activities have the potential to cost your has business significant amounts of money and resources if they occur.

Why do these activities occur?

There are many reasons why people carry out these activities. Telephone hackers can use someone else’s telephone system to make ‘free’ tolled calls (eg international and long distance calls) or to listen to voicemail. They can on-sell the use of the telephone system to others or reprogramme the system, causing malicious damage.

How do they do it?

The commonly-used method of telephone hacking is to gain unauthorised access to the PABX. This is done via the PABX maintenance port, voicemail (if voicemail can be accessed remotely) or the Direct Inward System Access (DISA) feature of a PABX.

Modern feature-rich PABXs and voicemail systems are software driven which allow them to accessed remotely. PABX maintainers usually provide their service via a PABX maintenance port, by interconnecting from their remote service centres via modem. By controlling this PABX maintenance port, hackers can change the call routing configuration, passwords and can delete or add extensions. In the worst case, hackers can shut down a PABX, impacting business operations.

Some voicemail systems can be accessed remotely and programmed to make outbound voice calls. Hackers make use of this feature to forward calls to a “phantom” mail box that will give a dial tone, allowing them to make calls from anywhere, on your business account. Hackers can also gain access to your mailbox to listen to your messages, change your greeting or delete your messages.

DISA is a feature enabling remote users to access an outside line via a PABX with an authorisation codes. This is a very useful feature for employees who are on the road a lot or who frequently make long distance calls or need to access international call conference after business hours. By gaining access to this feature, hackers can make access an outside line and make tolled calls at the cost of your business.

What can you do about it?

Having a properly secured telephone system is the best way to prevent telephone hacking and mitigate the potential damage and cost that could be incurred by your business as a result. The following are some industry best practice guidelines that, if followed could help reduce the risk of telephone hacking.

	Do	Don’t
Education	Familiarise yourself with the dangers of telephone hacking	Ignore the dangers of telephone hacking, thinking that it will not happen to you
	Periodically educate your employees on information security procedures and remind them periodically.
	Familiarise yourself with the features of your PABX and disable any features that are not in use.
Authorisation Code/Password	Change all default codes and passwords as soon as possible after the PABX is installed and update them regularly	Retain the default codes and passwords
	Choose random, lengthy passwords	Use passwords that can be guessed easily, eg your name, phone number, company name, birthdate etc
	Remind your employees periodically to keep their authorisation codes and passwords secret	Display your codes or passwords where they could be easily discovered eg on the wall next to the PABX
	Limit the number of staff who know the administrator password and change passwords as soon as possible after any of those staff leave the company	Provide codes, passwords and/or access numbers over the phone.
	When staff leave, cancel the associated extension, including any associated features, access rights (eg LD/IDD) and codes and passwords.
DISA	Only those employees who have a real need should be given the DISA access number and authorisation code	Turn on this feature if it is not required
	The first few digits of the access number for DISA should be different from the voice line, if possible.
Voice mail	Ensure your voicemail system is configured so that the external call forwarding feature is disabled, unless it is absolutely required.
	Delete any mailbox that is no longer in service
Toll Call	Bar access to international or long distance destinations to which your company does not require access
	Bar access to ‘toll’ calls, such as 1900, to which your company does not require access.
Extensions	When an extension is no longer required, it should be cancelled, along with associated features and access rights such as LD/IDD
Ongoing Monitoring	Familiarise yourself with your business’ call patterns and review them regularly
	Look for any suspicious call activity after hours, including weekends and public holidays
Equipment Room Access	The PABX system should be kept in a secured location to which only authorised users have access
	Ask for the identification of a PABX maintainer’s technician who needs to access your equipment room.

If you have any concerns that this may happen to you and you have an LG Aria or Lg-Nortel Telephone system call Metro for advice or a system check to ease your concerns