Starmer dumps doormat?

[Ian Batten]

On 22 Jan 2011, at 11:17, Roland Perry wrote:

> In article <731509C0-5F9D-4D2B-91ED-21B0FA91FA05 at batten.eu.org>, Ian Batten <igb at batten.eu.org> writes
> 
>>> And when I type "1571", and listen to a message to my wife, have I intercepted it, and did I do so lawfully.
>> 
>> On what basis is it legal, whereas other scenarios are illegal?
> 
> Perhaps the sender has given consent by leaving the message on what he can presumably identify as an answering machine service that might be accessed by multiple household members

A lot of people don't change the outgoing message, though, so unless you know people's domestic arrangements, you won't know if it's accessible by multiple people.  Especially as a lot of younger callers, whose experience is more with mobiles than landlines, may assume that it's like mobile voicemail which is generally only accessibly by the intended recipient and the News of the World.

And later:

> Unlike setting the VCR, where they are better at it than the adults).

VCR, grandad?

ian