In 1995, modern-day phreaker Edward E. Cummings, a man of 2600: The Hacker Quarterly notoriety and a native of Pennsylvania, was sent to federal prison for his phreaking exploits. He was the first person to be imprisoned without bail in the United States for using a modified Radio Shack speed dialer to make free telephone calls using public telephones. Bernie S., as he is known in the hacker community, says that what he did was not criminal, for the tones and information in his possession at the time of arrest were very easy to obtain. While imprisoned, Bernie S. was severely beaten by a prisoner who was anxious to use the telephone that Bernie S. was speaking on. More details on the misfortunes of Bernie S. with the legal system and his thoughts on the misunderstanding the government and society have about hackers is detailed in the 2002 release The Hacking of America: WhoÂ’s Doing It, Why, and How.

At the HOPE 5 (Hackers on Planet Earth) conference in July 2004, Bernie S. and Barry “The Key” Wels spoke on “hacking more of the invisible world”—a discussion on TSCM (Technical Surveillance Counter Measures), the art of evading electronic surveillance, and a presentation of intercepts and equipment demonstrations.

See Also: Goldstein, Emmanuel Hacker Icon (a.k.a. Eric Corley); Hacker Quarterly Magazine (a.k.a. 2600); HOPE (Hackers on Planet Earth); Key; Phreaking.