Comcast Installer Arrested For Creative Marketing > Testing someone else's cable box

Testing someone else's cable box

reply to Austinloop
If you have actually seen a Comcast work order and tried to match it to the connections you find in the field, you wouldn't be saying this. In the areas I've seen, even if all the "work" that you find in the field was done by Comcast (without help from people stealing service, "fixing" things they dug up while installing a fence, etc) the records in Comcast's system don't match what exists at least 20% of the time. The same reward structure that motivated this contractor to do unauthorized discos rewards shortcuts that undermine the accuracy of Comcast's records. One of the major outputs of area audits (where a team systematically inspects all the cable boxes in a service area) is corrections to the database although the financial motivation is catching unbilled services (so also due to Comcast errors). As a last resort, it was sometimes decided to simply disconnect everybody (1 - 4 lines in suburban areas) on a given box and sort it out when people called in!

I'm not suggesting that what this contractor did was OK but pointing out that your assumptions about the accuracy of Comcast records isn't supported by my first-hand knowledge.

By the way, this problem with outside plant records isn't limited to Comcast or cable companies. At one time GTE's telco records were only 50% accurate and it was SOP to dispatch a truck to discover the "ground truth" before creating a work order for the customer's service order.

I supervised a crew of outside technicians in the telephone business for service from DS0 thru DS3. I don't ever recall one of my technicians disconnecting another company's service to test the "cable box". That must be some really lax supervision and really lax technicians, if they can be called technicians. Rule One was always know where you supposed to be. Rule Two was know what you were doing. Obviously both rules were not followed.

reply to Austinloop
Devil's Advocate Here:

Perhaps, and im stretching here, the other contractor's guys going around doing the disco to get sales perhaps caused some little old lady to come out see what was going on, when she sees the guy arrested a few houses down, and starts to yell at him. And he, being the nice guy he is, after explaining that he don't work for that company, but wanting to be nice/polite/helpful offers to take a look to see if its something simple he can resolve. Thus prompting the Comcast reasoning that was given.

I know i've been in situations when i was working for DirecTV where the previous installer had unhooked TWC lines for a customer, and i get called out to try and fix it. And having limited knowledge on how their systems work (however more than most in my office, thus why i was sent) would normally be required to give the Corp Response of, thats not stuff, we cant touch it, ect... So perhaps he was just trying to be helpful, thinking that if she sees that comcast workers are nice she'll switch to us.

reply to jmmilner
This is a bigger issue in MDUs, where there's lots of apartment runs coming together in the wiring closet, where the labels indicating the apartments may be missing or lost, and where building residents pry the door open and "help themselves" to service and typically disrupt the signal to at least one other unit in the building.

When my company does an audit, they disconnect the lines to units who do not have service. If the labels have been "accidentally switched" or the cables "rearranged" by a service thief, the wrong sub may be cut off. So an honest paying customer get interrupted until the tech can return to the unit and reconnect them.

Some buildings have repeated problems, and I've suggested installing an IP camera with remote monitoring software (can move them to different locations as needed). Catch them on camera performing the theft, and have the police invite them for an overnight visit to the "grey-bar motel."

That being said, the Comcastic story fails the common sense test at multiple points. Cheaters will get caught eventually, the punishment is likely to be minor and ultimately just amount to loss of employment (and embarrassment).

NetLarry

reply to Austinloop

reply to NetLarry
I'd rather have Comcast go all-digital all-encryption in MDUs with repeat theft problems. It makes it less troublesome for apartment cabling maintenance.