------ f41th ADVISORY ------ f41th magazine is a publication of D4RKCYDE Communications. This advisory is the produce of in depth analysis and investigation. All advice contained in this paper should be absorbed in a serious manor. For information, questions or comments, please feel free to contact any of the D4RKCYDE staff listed in this advisory. --------------------------------------------------------------------- DATE ISSUED: 2nd May 1999 STAFF CONCERNED: hybrid (th0rn@coldmail.com) SUBJECT ADVISORY: The ENTIRE phone network LEVEL OF IMPORTANCE: [*] [*] [*] [*] [*] (0-5) PARTYS CONCERENED: AT&T, BT, BELL, MCI, SPRINT, KDD, (any l-d carrier, or maintainer of switching/routing equipment. Public Switched/Private nets. --------------------------------------------------------------------- After much research I have concluded that the international phone network WILL erode at the time of the new millenium. It is of up-most importance that every global title translation database is upgraded to y2k compatable software. Although the millenium 'bug' paradox is somewhat un-reliable in terms of hardcore fact, the risk in leaving switches in their present condition would be SHEER STUPIDITY. Because each international and local gateway communicate with each other via the means of checksum and data, if even one 4ESS or similar gate deteriated, the entire network would be affected. This is not a timb-bomb scenario, this is happening NOW. Although the telco's will not admit it, I garantee that local switches all over the world are failing, if not from the y2k scenariio, but from over routing, and busy circuits. I have conducted many experiments concerning incoming trunks, and found that MANY switches serving local areas are incapable of handeling the amplitude of network traffic which will occur on y2k. For example, 6 remote modems where set to dial to and from each other sucesivly through a local area switch, ie: 3 dialed, 3 picked up. The experiment lasted for 12 hours, during that time, the DMS switch involved dramticly deteriated after only 5 hours.. trunks where held open for more than 2 minutes a time, causing busy and fault network announcments, and after 10 hours only 1 out of every 3 calls made via the same switch routed succesivly. AT&T claim that when the network becomes busy or saturated such as this experiment, additional switches are deployed for the remaining wait of network traffic. The modems where dialing similataniously (3 at a time) making 36 calls a minute. The backup switch involved was obviously inferior to the switch we where testing, a dramatic drop in call succesfullness occured when the backup device was implemented. Now imagine how many calls a minute are going to be made on the dawn of the millenuim?, not many I imagine you think, wrong: I ABSOLUTLY, 100% gaurantee that the US phone network and surrounding pstn's will be almost completly busy'd out at the peak calling time, which I estimate as being a 30 hour period over the time zones. The consecuences of such a network outage would be colosal, I will not even begin to describe the amount of financial damage that will occur. ADVICE: ------ * Every bgackbone US ESS switch should be backed up with addtional or neigbouring mechanisms. * All routing software at intralata exchanges should be programed to route via the least used switch, rather than the closest. This way network traffic will be distrobuted evenly accross the network. * International calls should be treated with higher priority than local area calls, and routed via designated switches and trunks. * Every local/central routing mechanism should be upgraded for capacity and then tested. * The main problem will be the global title translation unit databases. These should be tested with the most exreame conditions until they can withhold the massive incoming global translation requests from routers. CONCLUSION: ----------- This is a very general warning, but believe me, network outage WILL occur if the above advice is not looked into. I'm not a 'qualified' telecommunications engineer/developer, I wish I was, but I can see what is going to happen, and believe me, the telcos will be sorry if they don't in accordance now. Thankyou for taking the time to read this advisory. ___ ___ _____.___.____________________ ____________ hybrid@b4b0.org / | \\__ | |\______ \______ \/_ \______ \ hybrid@ninex.com / ~ \/ | | | | _/| _/ | || | \ hybrid.dtmf.org \ Y /\____ | | | \| | \ | || ` \ ---------------- \___|_ / / ______| |______ /|____|_ / |___/_______ / \/ \/ \/ \/ \/