Black fax
Encyclopedia
The term black fax refers to a prank fax
transmission, consisting of one or more pages entirely filled with a uniform black tone. The sender's intention is typically to consume as much of the recipient's fax ink, toner
or thermal paper or disk space as possible, thus costing the recipient money and/or denying the recipient the use of their machine (this is similar to computer-based denial of service attacks). This is made easier because the fax transmission protocols compress the solid black image very well, so a very short fax call can produce many pages.
Black faxes have been used to harass large institutions or government departments, to retaliate against the senders of junk fax
es, or merely as simple pranks.
The basic principle of a black fax can be extended to form a black fax attack. In this case, one or more sheets are fed halfway through the sender's fax machine and taped end to end, forming an endless loop that cycles through the machine. Not only can solid black be used, but also images which will repeat endlessly on the receiver's machine until his or her toner runs out.
The introduction of computer-based facsimile systems
(combined with integrated document imaging solutions) at major corporations now means that black faxes are unlikely to cause problems for larger corporations. On the other hand, the ability of computer modems to send faxes offers new avenues for abuse. A program could be used to generate hundreds of pages of perfectly compressed, pure black and send them very quickly to the target fax machine. Black faxes have been used by the group Anonymous (group)
on the Westboro Baptist Church
in demonstrations against their ways.
Black faxes are similar (in both intention and implementation) to lace card
s.
Fax
Fax , sometimes called telecopying, is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material , normally to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output device...
transmission, consisting of one or more pages entirely filled with a uniform black tone. The sender's intention is typically to consume as much of the recipient's fax ink, toner
Toner
Toner is a powder used in laser printers and photocopiers to form the printed text and images on the paper. In its early form it was simply carbon powder. Then, to improve the quality of the printout, the carbon was melt-mixed with a polymer...
or thermal paper or disk space as possible, thus costing the recipient money and/or denying the recipient the use of their machine (this is similar to computer-based denial of service attacks). This is made easier because the fax transmission protocols compress the solid black image very well, so a very short fax call can produce many pages.
Black faxes have been used to harass large institutions or government departments, to retaliate against the senders of junk fax
Junk fax
Junk faxes are a form of telemarketing where unsolicited advertisements are sent via fax transmission. Junk faxes are the faxed equivalent of spam or junk mail...
es, or merely as simple pranks.
The basic principle of a black fax can be extended to form a black fax attack. In this case, one or more sheets are fed halfway through the sender's fax machine and taped end to end, forming an endless loop that cycles through the machine. Not only can solid black be used, but also images which will repeat endlessly on the receiver's machine until his or her toner runs out.
The introduction of computer-based facsimile systems
Fax server
A fax server is a system installed in a local area network server that allows computer users whose computers are attached to the LAN to send and receive fax messages...
(combined with integrated document imaging solutions) at major corporations now means that black faxes are unlikely to cause problems for larger corporations. On the other hand, the ability of computer modems to send faxes offers new avenues for abuse. A program could be used to generate hundreds of pages of perfectly compressed, pure black and send them very quickly to the target fax machine. Black faxes have been used by the group Anonymous (group)
Anonymous (group)
Anonymous is an international hacking group, spread through the Internet, initiating active civil disobedience, while attempting to maintain anonymity. Originating in 2003 on the imageboard 4chan, the term refers to the concept of many online community users simultaneously existing as an anarchic,...
on the Westboro Baptist Church
Westboro Baptist Church
The Westboro Baptist Church is an independent Baptist church known for its extreme stance against homosexuality and its protest activities, which include picketing funerals and desecrating the American flag. The church is widely described as a hate group and is monitored as such by the...
in demonstrations against their ways.
Black faxes are similar (in both intention and implementation) to lace card
Lace card
A lace card is a punched card with all holes punched . They were mainly used as practical jokes to cause unwanted disruption in card readers...
s.
External links
- Black Fax at WordSpy
- Extreme Response not a solution -The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
- Description of Black Faxing in court documents — usdoj.gov Archive copy Category:Practical jokes