Captain Crunch (the 2600 Hz whistle)
loresecurityops culture
The phone-phreaking legend that a toy whistle emitting 2600 Hz could seize AT&T long-distance trunks.
John Draper took the handle Captain Crunch after a whistle packaged in the cereal happened to produce the 2600 Hz tone that old telephone switches used to signal an idle trunk, letting phreakers place free calls. The 1971 Esquire article that publicized it inspired a generation of hackers, including the young Wozniak and Jobs, and named the later magazine 2600.
Also known as: John Draper, Cap'n Crunch whistle, phreaking, 2600 Hz
Sources
- Rosenbaum, 'Secrets of the Little Blue Box', Esquire (1971)