Apparently the blind kids told Ron just about everything I did, naturally without my permission. At that point, I had already stopped hacking from my home phone, but had access to a phone in Los Gatos that had a very strange quirk. See the section on What we discovered about Ma Bell for details.

Anyway, I briefly talked to this Rosenbaum dude who didn't even tell me what the blind kids told him, and without checking with me, went and printed it. Some info was correct, other info was absolutely false.

I get word that this article was out, hurry down to the local newsstand to grab a copy. While reading it, my jaw dropped. I was appalled at all the mistakes in the article and how sensationalized it was. I know now, that I would inevitably be picked up by the FBI, it was just a matter of time. I immediately went home and ditched my super automated blue box, notes and anything else that pointed me to this.

It took longer than I thought for the authorities to contact me. But all around me, people were going down, getting supeona from the grand jury. Then, in a single day, a major sweep took place, and 4 people from Seattle, 3 people from San Jose, and 5 people from LA got busted all at once and within minutes of each other.

I wasn't picked up yet, but know it was coming soon, so I continued with my classes in college, trying not to let it bother me. Some reporters managed to contact a close friend, who talked to a reporter, and gave me the reporter's number.

The Esquire article had a serious impact on Ma Bell. It dramatically raised the incidence of toll fraud, and it was impossible to tell how much money they lost. I chastised the blind kids for even talking to Ron, but Ron contacted them before I had a chance to tell the kids not to talk to him.