toothing? Bluetooth naughty message SPAM?
I wrote this article a few months ago: http://www.gomonews.com/bluetooth-sex-messages-on-a-train-only-in-london/
It was about me getting some SPAM via Bluetooth. Today, I received an email from (wait for it) The BBC! Yes. The BBC has found GoMo News and researchers wanted to interview me on this for Radio 4.
Link to most recent blog post: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/ipm/2008/08/bluetooth_sex_messages_on_trai.shtml
Yikes! But anyway; since I spoke to the BBC (head swells with pride) I have been doing some investigation, following a call I had with reporter Jennifer Tracey. She mentioned that “toothing” as it was called was perceived as a hoax about four years ago. I asked an ex-analyst friend of mine and he agreed. But when I explained that this was recent and I had never ever heard of “toothing” he thought that there might be something in it.
Apparently other Radio 4 listeners have also had the same experience. So investigations are under way.
So - have you ever experienced Bluetooth SPAM? Are you aware of toothing? Please leave a comment or email me if you prefer @ gomonews@yahoo.com
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6 Responses to “toothing? Bluetooth naughty message SPAM?”
B, the original article that appeared (in Time out I think) was a hoax, the journalist admitted it about 6 weeks later..BUT as with most hoax’s real life started to imitate art and toothing started. But toothing isn’t about SPAM, its sex. People, according to the article where toothing..ie finding others to have sex on trains, in the toilets, stations etc.
Comment made on August 5th, 2008 at 9:43 pmGood grief.
Comment made on August 6th, 2008 at 9:22 amNice to see you back on gomo Rob!
Thanks for post Bena.
Have also been hearing about its partner activity bluejacking - people being sent unwanted videos and images. (The spam rather than the sex element Rob?).
But, by the looks of it, it’s rarely reported and difficult to tell whether it’s increasing. I wonder if people are growing more cautious about leaving their bluetooth active?
Welcome to leave comments on the blog or contact us if this has happened to you.
Comment made on August 6th, 2008 at 11:02 amhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/ipm/2008/08/bluetooth_sex_messages_on_trai.shtml
Hi Bena -
I think that nowadays, “toothing” has become a shorthand for a variety of things. It originally referred only to the supposed practise of meeting people for causal sex (for some reason, it came out around the same time as there was lots of coverage of “dogging” - roadside sex in the UK).
Anyway - with regard to the more common occurrence of receiving inbound messages from businesses - that’s definitely on the increase. I do a few articles on the blog on Proximity Marketing, which is most definitely an emerging success story in the area.
Plus of course, there are a variety of apps you can now download which help you scan for nearby devices and connect to them to send messages, pictures etc. (PocketRadar and so on). I find that young people like these as a distraction on the train - they browse for nearby phones and try to connect, send messages, pictures etc.
Cheers, Sean (http://www.rococosoft.com/weblog/index.html)
Comment made on August 6th, 2008 at 12:44 pmHi Jennifer
Yes there is a cross over. There was some scares about 3 or 4 years ago originally about being able to bluejack a phone and get access to address books etc.
Proximity marketing has sprung up since then. I lead a team that developed a Bluetooth content and delivery system 4 years ago and it was one of the questions we asked ourselves, do we aggressively push content..vouchers, discounts etc. Its easy to push to any open bluetooth connection as you know but as you pointed out this can be looked at as SPAM.
We decided that this was too obtrusive and believed other calls to action to get cell phone users to interact with bluetooth was a better idea.
I really have never thought SPAM ever works, I mean who ever gets a piece of SPAM in their email and goes - hmm that’s a good idea, i need one of those!!!!! Yes some people have been taken in by the Nigerian email scam but then, blame stupidity and not the technology!
Bluetooth is a much aligned and over looked technology, it is so much more than a way of connecting hands free. We had ways of end users surfing the net via bluetooth and streaming video/audio over it and we were working on a VOIP solution as well.
Although so many people now rave about Wi-Fi/3G etc there are still so many places that are not covered and when in buildings 3G is often not an option anyway, Bluetooth is the best and only mass market option available, for now!
Comment made on August 6th, 2008 at 2:49 pmHi Rob
Thanks for your comments. I’m aware of bluetooth being used by marketing and gaming companies and interested to hear new ways people have found to use it. Getting spammed via bluetooth is a sure way to kill it.
You mention that it’s an overlooked technology - do you have an example in mind of a really interesting way someone is using bluetooth?
We’ve heard from a spokesperson at the OMTP (Open Mobile Terminal Platform - won’t add a link as I think it’ll put my comment in Bena’s spam box) who’ve recently brought out guidelines for bluetooth usage. He says that bluesnarfing happened because of a flaw when bluetooth first came out and has since been amended by phone companies.
Also been speaking to people who regularly bluejack and say it’s just a bit of fun…
Comment made on August 8th, 2008 at 1:04 pmLeave a Comment