The hookswitch bypass can also be found by examination of the phone.
The bypass will consist of one or more resistors, capacitors or diodes, usually
connected to either the hookswitch assembly or network. Look for anything in
the phone that doesn’t “fit in” or that seems out of place. Since phones are
relatively inexpensive, you may want to replace a suspicious phone with a
new one.
If you find a tap, then what? Your first impulse will probably be to rip it out –
but stop and think before you do that. It may be worth while to try to
determine who planted it and use the tap to feed them false information.
Another reason for leaving the tap in place is so that you can get law
enforcements help in prosecuting whoever placed the illegal tap. Most law
enforcement departments do not have the manpower to help if you just
suspect a tap, but if you have the physical evidence they should be willing to
investigate. Remember, wiretapping is a Federal crime as well as a violation
in most states.
LIMITATIONS
While the TT-46 will detect the most common on-premises wiretaps and
hookswitch bypasses, there are some it won’t detect. These include drop-in
transmitters, bypasses activated by high voltage and inductive taps that don’t
have a physical connection to the phone or line. In addition to the drop-in
transmitter, other series RF (radio) transmitter taps can be installed inside the
telephone however; they can all be located with the TD-53 RF detector.
Of course, the TT-46 does not detect off-premises wiretaps such as court
ordered taps that are connected down line or at the central phone office.
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