If 'Charlie' Drives By Your Home..........???

[Joe_4090]

Good afternoon all:

I've been asked this a couple of times by one or two of the few
people I 'provide' for. Wasn't quite sure what to tell them and
did want to ease their concerns if possible....so can someone
enlighten me please:

Does 'Charlie's' service-men possess equipment by which they can
drive by your home and be able to detect from a distance that you
are actively receiving Dish service??? If so, is this much of a threat
and/or have there been any cases of 'testers' being busted in this
manner??

Thanks for any input.

[badger6]

I wouldn't think so !!!

[JT]

Even if they could tell if your lnb is active, what difference would it make? They certainly don't have teh right to trespass on your property and the service could belong to anyone. Service doesn't necessarily have to be in the home owners name. As far as I know, the only way people have gotten busted in the past doing this hobby is by credit card records and being blatantly open about being a dealer at some level.

[midgetcoach]

The correct answer to the question is " NO".

[empulse]

NO.

I go through this with my father-in-law alot.

"They can't detect this?? You sure, a Guy at work said...."

NO.

Comcast and other cable providers have equipment to check for leaks (signal loss) which can catch people who steal cable because typical homeowners think a crimp-on / twist-on from radio shack is worth a damn. Also Cable companies intentionally broadcast a signal just above 107.9FM that is a beeping fad-in / fade-out that you can pick up with older analog stero's (ones with a dial tuner).

Now MLB, Bush and Chenney? They have satellites that can read your thoughts. I guess you are screwed anyways.

[rg6a]

NO.

I go through this with my father-in-law alot.

"They can't detect this?? You sure, a Guy at work said...."

NO.

Comcast and other cable providers have equipment to check for leaks (signal loss) which can catch people who steal cable because typical homeowners think a crimp-on / twist-on from radio shack is worth a damn. Also Cable companies intentionally broadcast a signal just above 107.9FM that is a beeping fad-in / fade-out that you can pick up with older analog stero's (ones with a dial tuner).

Now MLB, Bush and Chenney? They have satellites that can read your thoughts. I guess you are screwed anyways.

That myth about Sat providers has been going on forever, hell it's a passive device (not talking the modem). Their ads constantly go on about just take the IRD when moving and we'll install a new dish etc., and of course they send out a bonus letter to the old address telling the new occupants....you're already wired and on it goes.

My Cable company does 2X per annum Audits, two trucks and they will sweep the entire block. They check the boulevard distribution amps (them green boxes) and know who should have what Filter or be connected and will open the gray box on the side of the house if no Filter is present at the amp.

Few months ago, came home early and saw the guy at the side of my house just buttoning up the box, his clipboard was on the driveway. Every address, and not connected and if so, what colour filter which he had to check off.

The new digital cable STBs (Scientific Atlanta) are Bi-Directional devices, hence no known hack yet.

[badger6]

2 audits a year, you must live in a smaller town.

[Joe_4090]

Thanks to all:

I pretty much thought not....but just wanted some expert opinions.
A pity some people have to miss out on a good thing....just 'cause
they're too 'scary'. :rolleyes:

Again, thanks for the info....y'all are great!

[MarvinGardens]

In the UK, every TV owned by a consumer is taxed and licensed by the government. That means that you cannot watch TV at home without a TV license.

The government enforces this law with high-tech vehicles that roam neighborhoods sniffing out unlicensed TV's.

Every TV has a "local oscillator" (including every other type of RF receiver like an IRD or radar detector) that transmits an RF signal which can be picked up by these roving vans from the street.

When they pick up a signal from an area that they know from their database should not have unlicensed TV's, they use their handheld sniffer's to zero-in on the offender.

So even though Charlie has not assembled a "satellite police force", the technology to find you is already here.

[litedir4650]

Anything that falls in my backyard is mine and if you don't want me to have it get it outta there!!!!!

[Yongone]

That comment is tired and tuly stupid, devoid of any acceptance and understanding of society and laws. what are you, 18?

[Tweaker_G]

I actually install satellite systems and last time I checked I don't have any special devices to check if it's getting a signal or not. The only real way we could check is to pull the wire and see if a charge is being sent to an lnb which could mean that you have a receiver hooked to that line, but like somebody said earlier we don't really care. At least for me I wouldn't wanna waist my time going to someone's house and testing the line if I'm not getting paid for it.

[whitestuff]

long as we're on the subject of paranoia... i use casette cases to mail cards, i guess the postal service could care less what is in the case as well when it's x-rayed, right?

[Dragster]

Just to add something for the group here,cable companys can detect if you have split into there line,or if your splitting extra lines in the house.They catch this if the prep and connector are not done right,by a leakage detector that is installed in the company vehicle.

[empulse]

Marvin - you must not have alot of RF interference there.. I built a little device with my dad once that could pick up the RF off of old CRT monitors and you could view them from the street.

Big Brother is always watching closer and closer, and you can either be afraid of him -- or stick your finger in his f'ing eye.


As for mailing cards, stick em in something hard, and USPS doesn't care about a single package. I have sent some to someone on here that when they reached him... they had apparently been punished with a meat tenderizer.

[pcpartsrus2001]

I had a dish mounted on the front of my house, it had 6 lnb's going across the front of it. I was inside watching tv one day and saw a dish truck in front of my house so I peeked out the window, and there was a guy standing at my dish with a digital camera taking pics, when I opened the door he ran like he**. I relocated my dish and never heard a word from anyone about it, so I guess he was just curious and wanted pics of it??? :)

[Yongone]

I heard that if an American touches a BEV dish he's gonna get cooties...

Man, where is this thread going? Feels like a "Believe or not!" segment.

Guys, say n to drugs and yes to hard liquor.

[alsouthster]

Guys, say n to drugs and yes to hard liquor.

beg to differ....

Y to drugs
i.e.
pot
hash
shrooms (consult Snake & HCAA)
peyote (consult Tony Soprano)
LSD (consult Baba Ram Dass)

N to blow
unless someone else is buying and you are sure you are just going to do a bit, just a little line to keep you awake, not a lot, you would never get hooked on it, no not you...

N to hard liqour
i.e.
Rye whiskey: Arg bad headache the next day,
Tequila: Ditto, argg bad headache plus fucken mariachi band in head
Jagermeister: Ditto, arrggg, oomh pah pah band in head and maybe a lawsuit

YES TO BEER

hope this helps

[whitestuff]

don't forget the X, perks, somas, xanee bars.. don't send them through the mail but feel free to share with your local installer..

[badger6]

Just to add something for the group here,cable companys can detect if you have split into there line,or if your splitting extra lines in the house.They catch this if the prep and connector are not done right,by a leakage detector that is installed in the company vehicle.

If you use a proper F connector and compression tool, the leakage detector won't detect shit except the same thing as the legit subs are emiting, which is useless to the cable company !!!

[Drucius]

It's actually required by the FCC for cable companies to do this as they broadcast on the same feq's as aircraft transmissions, and could theoretically cause interrupted comm's with aircraft.\
Mod'ing the device to detect Dave's, Charlie's abd Bev's feq's would not be difficult in the least for them.
There is always a certian amount of residual radiation from tv's, but your leakage detectors are metering for excessive leakage. I used to work for a cable company and when we found high leakage we had to fix the connectors or wiring that was faulty.
Drucius

[litedir4650]

I accept and understand societies laws as they affect me, but I'm a not or ever will be part of a flock of sheep!

[Yongone]

We all follow many things, this is the way of humans. We are beings of pattern, though we have the capability to be creative. Just the fact you will never want to be part of a flock of sheep simply puts you in another flock.

I'll bet you work for a living, use the washrooms when you need to go, buy food at stores, wear clothes when you go outside the house, put gas in the car at a gas station, often laugh at the same jokes yours friends find funny, and the list goes on and on.

There are so many things we ALL do and so in the end we're not all that different from a handful of general profiles. Cute girls get more dates, high school drop-outs don't normally get the best jobs.

Here's an example of people who wanted to stand out:
Ever notice how when piercing and tattoos got real popular, everyone got one or more because it was a way to stand out of the crowd, to present your uniqueness of personality. Now it's all over and more than half kinda regret what they did. My point is that they all wanted to stand out of the crowd only to end up being in another crowd.


So when I hear someone say he's not a follower, I am very suspicious of that claim. Only a small fraction of people are innovators which makes them stand out.

I'm always reminded of the joke I once told my dad. He chuckled then told me he heard that same jokes 40 years before...

[rg6a]

2 audits a year, you must live in a smaller town.

Yeah only about 4 million plus. ;-)




PS I'm in the 'burbs

[rg6a]

In the UK, every TV owned by a consumer is taxed and licensed by the government. That means that you cannot watch TV at home without a TV license.

The government enforces this law with high-tech vehicles that roam neighborhoods sniffing out unlicensed TV's.

Every TV has a "local oscillator" (including every other type of RF receiver like an IRD or radar detector) that transmits an RF signal which can be picked up by these roving vans from the street.

When they pick up a signal from an area that they know from their database should not have unlicensed TV's, they use their handheld sniffer's to zero-in on the offender.

So even though Charlie has not assembled a "satellite police force", the technology to find you is already here.



I have some old tube am radios that go back to the late fourties and on the back panel, it states that one must have a License. That was the war and post war years and guess it was paranoia on the Gov't's part.

Going back to my teens and was into electronics really big, remember repairing my parent's tv set one time. The screen collapsed and just a single horizontal line across the middle. Vertical switching transistor, the TV repairman said 'I've got to take it back to the shop <translated $200 repair>', my Dad looked at me and said that I can do it (part cost $8 and waited a month and then bumped him on my Allowance ;-) ).

The flyback transformer emits RF, when PAY TV was introduced.....75 cents worth of parts and had a Pay Decoder.....just grabbed the RF off the flyback to restore vertical hold.

Anyways with all the garbage RF out there, from cordless phones, to Wi-Fi Routers, it's impossible to hone in with anything less than what Q would devise for James Bond.

Also TV sets have plastic cabinets and thus will emit RF, but so will your CRT computer monitor!

I can't believe that the U.K. bothers with this since VAT is paid at purchase and besides Warranty registrations....helluva lot easier to monitor that way. Also if it was a 'Licensed' device the retailer would have to fill out some Gov't form.

I'll send an email to a friend in the U.K. and ask......I'd think it's an old law that either has been repealed or not enforced.

Anyways, it was an interesting read.

[litedir4650]

Another armchair philosopher,I used to think like that but after two years of Viet Nam and three bullet holes I had an epiphany on the social order of things. I feel You voted for Bush

[MarvinGardens]

I can't believe that the U.K. bothers with this since VAT is paid at purchase and besides Warranty registrations....helluva lot easier to monitor that way. Also if it was a 'Licensed' device the retailer would have to fill out some Gov't form.

TV licensing and TV detection in the UK is alive and well:

hxxp://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/index.jsp

hxxp://www.tvlicensing.biz/detection/index.htm

[JT]

The reason the UK can do it is because there is no right to privacy. There are basically no assurances against illegal search and seizure in the Uk or even Canada. But then again, how much right to privacy do we have in the US today??? The difference I noticed when visiting both countries was that the vast majority of the time the police in these countries didn't abuse their privleges like police in the US do. And that they tended not to enforce victimless crimes like drugs, prostitution and illegal TV reception, at least not unless your a dealer at some level. For sure your average installer couldn't care less about TV hackers. In fact, every installer I've met is a hacker themselves. They sell that equipment they've replaced in an ebay auction or have a connection with someone that will move it for them.

[badger6]

Yeah only about 4 million plus. ;-)




PS I'm in the 'burbs


Damn, I'm surprised they have the manpower. Down here where I am, they may do an audit every year or two. But even then they contract it out to third party contractors. The contractors fuck up most of the jobs they get because they hire the worst of the worst and are greedy as shit. I once worked for a contractor to Time Warner that did non pay disconnects and I would say that 90% of our guys were hooking up bootleg cable on the side. Easy $50 - $100 for 5-10 mins work. My point is that when the job is done right, by people that do it everyday, its pretty hard catch it and to fix the problem !!!

[MarvinGardens]

The reason the UK can do it is because there is no right to privacy. There are basically no assurances against illegal search and seizure in the Uk or even Canada. But then again, how much right to privacy do we have in the US today???


It would not be an invasion of the right to privacy to do this in the USA.

Hand-held infrared detectors are commonly used in the USA to detect indoor marijuana grow labs.

Law enforcement drives up and down neighborhoods looking for "hot spots" in private residences (generally in basements and garages). This evidence coupled with abnormally high electric usage (high wattage grow lamps running day and night) is usually enough for a search warrant.

[atvtony]

I use these same lamps on my aquarium ....is growing fish and coral illegal too?
definatly not enough for a search warrant oh BTW they are now in your tv too if you own a DLP or LCD projo.....
Guess you are subject to warrant to now...

[badger6]

It would not be an invasion of the right to privacy to do this in the USA.

Hand-held infrared detectors are commonly used in the USA to detect indoor marijuana grow labs.

Law enforcement drives up and down neighborhoods looking for "hot spots" in private residences (generally in basements and garages). This evidence coupled with abnormally high electric usage (high wattage grow lamps running day and night) is usually enough for a search warrant.
Yea, its a sad day in america when the govenment is more worried about people growing dope than they are with mexico invading us like a hoard locusts or sick homeless people without care. I guess growing illegal and dangerous mind altering pot might cut into the profits of the countless legal and dangerous mind altering drugs put out by the pharmacutical companies that run the country. But to keep on topic, I would tell the original poster not to worry too much about Charlie driving by his house. If your that worried, just paint over the dish logo and make it a generic dish or better yet move it to the back yard with those hungry dobermans. Even if they had some kind of RF detecter, it wouldn't distinguish between dish, dtv, FTA, or the any number of other household devices that would emit such a signal, therefore they would have no reason to fuck with you as you don't have an echostar dish !!!!

[fubr]

funny how a thread with a member asking how to fix 005 nag goes unanswered for days while this stupid shit get filled up in matter of hours.


Guys take a minutes before posting today and ask, Have I answered any questions or helped a newbie lately?
If you can live with your answer to yourself then post on friend

[MarvinGardens]

I use these same lamps on my aquarium ....i

Don't let your paranoia run loose.

A marijuana grow lamp is easily distinguished from the lamp heating your fishies, lol.

[badger6]

Don't let your paranoia run loose.

A marijuana grow lamp is easily distinguished from the lamp heating your fishies, lol.

Yea, my ass and I ought to set up a couple in the spare bedroom, just to see what they do. Then sue their ass when they bust in and don't find shit, but some lamps set up to dry paint.

[midgetcoach]

Someone Stick A Fork In This Thread. I Think It's Done.

[MarvinGardens]

Get real.

When looking at a house using an IR viewer, the entire structure glows bright white from the heat generated by the grow lamps. A fish tank would not even begin to heat the outside walls of your home.

Secondly, as I stated above, it's not only the infrared signature that is factored into a search warrant, there must also be evidence of high power usage. When I say high power usage I mean an electric bill in the neighborhood of a thousand dollars.

Grow lamps really do use that much of electricity. Your electric bill will have jumped from a couple hundred or so to near a thousand dollars or more from one month to the next.

I am sorry to tell you that you will have to come up with another hair-brained scheme to make money. The government is generally immune from such law suits.

[badger6]

Well maybe in todays corrupt government. But in reality, lamps and a high power bill prove nothing, just like an echostar dish bolted to the side of a house and RF coming from that house would prove nothing. It would be nothing but harassment plain and simple !!!

[JT]

It would not be an invasion of the right to privacy to do this in the USA.
Hand-held infrared detectors are commonly used in the USA to detect indoor marijuana grow labs.
Law enforcement drives up and down neighborhoods looking for "hot spots" in private residences (generally in basements and garages). This evidence coupled with abnormally high electric usage (high wattage grow lamps running day and night) is usually enough for a search warrant.

And I thought I was paranoid. Actually, a strong heat signature, even for a grow room, is not enough for a warrant. A case from Oregon went to the supreme court and said so. Not saying the cops don't still do it, just that it's not enough for a search warrant.

[cojones]

You don't have the lights on 24 hours a day. The plants will never bloom then.

[JT]

post edited for my own protection ;-)

[MarvinGardens]

My information comes from real life first-hand experience on this subject.

I never intended to fear monger. Sorry if it came out that way.

BTW, I am talking about grow operations of a hundred plants, or so.

[badger6]

Even if we applied it to this situation, it wouldn't fly. It would be Charlie sitting outside someones house with the RF equipment. I doubt that any judge would issue a search warrant based on that info. RF could be emitted by thousands of products. Not to mention that Charlie doesn't have the resources to effectively pursue people in that way. Just put the dish out of sight in the back yard and take his shit. Like taking candy from a baby. My dead friend once told me "that if you want something, you have to take it". He wasn't all that wrong, was he ??? ha ha ha !!!!

[fubr]

maybe charlie cant find out shit by driving around but this is a fact....according to this thread
most people who test charlie also smoke pot :)

be puffin or be passin

[badger6]

maybe charlie cant find out shit by driving around but this is a fact....according to this thread
most people who test charlie also smoke pot :)

be puffin or be passin
I may have a lil once or twice a year. What of it ???? I'm more into huffin paint thinner anyways, yummy !!!!

[RavesRus]

That myth about Sat providers has been going on forever, hell it's a passive device (not talking the modem). Their ads constantly go on about just take the IRD when moving and we'll install a new dish etc., and of course they send out a bonus letter to the old address telling the new occupants....you're already wired and on it goes.

My Cable company does 2X per annum Audits, two trucks and they will sweep the entire block. They check the boulevard distribution amps (them green boxes) and know who should have what Filter or be connected and will open the gray box on the side of the house if no Filter is present at the amp.

Few months ago, came home early and saw the guy at the side of my house just buttoning up the box, his clipboard was on the driveway. Every address, and not connected and if so, what colour filter which he had to check off.

The new digital cable STBs (Scientific Atlanta) are Bi-Directional devices, hence no known hack yet.

Cable company's use a device called a time domain reflectometer that will tell u exaxtly where a splice has been made (in feet) by sending a pulse up the coax which gets reflected back by an open or a short.

[dellsam34]

I have some friends living in the UK have hacked FTA receivers hooked up to LCD monitors they have never complained about license issues. probably this law apply to old school poeple that still receive local channels over the air with CRT TV's, this law is becoming useless.

[badger6]

Cable company's use a device called a time domain reflectometer that will tell u exaxtly where a splice has been made (in feet) by sending a pulse up the coax which gets reflected back by an open or a short.

Most illegal cable is not spliced. Its just hooked up at the tap. I used to find that ghetto rigged shit sometimes and just left it alone. They didn't pay me to be loss prevention, they paid me for a certain job, and thats the job that I did. Nothing more, nothing less !!!

[whitestuff]

i ran some coax at an apartment to a splitter in the main cable box. lasted maybe two weeks before there was no tv and a padlock on the box. and hey, so there's some loadies here and there.. this thread still contains some interesting(if not useful) information. it varies state to state i'm sure, but i think the heat sig and large discrepencies in power usage may be enough for a search warrant. guess you could say you just hooked up your hot tub. wall to wall foil has been successful in smaller indoor ops around here.

[atvtony]

A few years ago I took one of those "filters" apart it was pretty easy to drill it out hollow then insert a peice of coax and make a barrel connector out of it....I don't have cable anymore havent for years but friends of mine are still cooking along like this the cable co looks at it and it looks like one of thier tamper prood connectors....ha ha ha