A vertical service code (VSC) is a sequence of digits and the signals star (*) and pound/hash (#) dialed on a telephone keypad or rotary dial to access certain telephone service features. Some vertical service codes require dialing of a telephone number after the code sequence. On a touch tone telephone, the codes are usually initiated with the star key, resulting in the commonly used name star codes. On rotary dial telephones, the star is replaced by dialing 11.
In North American telephony, VSCs were developed by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T) as Custom Local Area Signaling Services (CLASS or LASS) codes in the 1960s and 70s. Their use became ubiquitous throughout the 1990s and eventually became a recognized standard. As CLASS was an AT&T trademark, the term vertical service code was adopted by the North American Numbering Plan Administration. The use of vertical is a somewhat dated reference to older switching methods and the fact that these services can only be accessed by a telephone subscriber, going up (vertically) inside the local central office instead of out (horizontally) to another telephone company.
Feature definitions
The following are the vertical service codes generally recommended by the North American Numbering Plan Administrator for use in the NANP territories. Not all of these services are available in all areas, and some are only available on landline telephones or Mobile phones.
Local Area Signalling Services (LASS) and Custom Calling Feature Control Codes:234
| Vertical service code | Service definition | Australia | Japan | UK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonedialing | Pulsedialing | ||||
| *51 | 1151 | Who called me. Provides the directory number, date and time of unanswered calls. | |||
| *52 | 1152 | Call Hold (Single Line Variety Package). Permits the call to be picked up at another station. | |||
| *53 | 1153 | Distinctive Ring B. Allows a subscriber to alert a specific party distinctively. | |||
| *54 | 1154 | Distinctive Ring C. Allows a subscriber to alert a specific party distinctively. | |||
| *57 | 1157 | Call trace (Malicious caller identification) | |||
| *60 | 1160 | Call blocking | |||
| *61 | 1161 | Priority call | |||
| *62 | 1162 | Selective call waiting | |||
| *63 | 1163 | Selective call forwarding | |||
| *65 | 1165 | Calling number delivery activation | |||
| *66 | 1166 | Continuous redial | |||
| *67 | 1167 | Calling number delivery blocking | 1831#31#56 | 141#31#7 | |
| *68 | 1168 | Activate call forwarding on busy | |||
| *69 | 1169 | Last-call return (incoming) | *69 HFC *10#89 | 1361136310 | 147111 |
| *70 | 1170 | Call waiting disable | |||
| *71 | 1171 | Usage sensitive three-way call | |||
| *72 | 1172 | Unconditional forward: All calls | |||
| *73 | 1173 | Call forward: Cancel | |||
| *74 | 1174 | Speed calling (8 numbers) | |||
| *75 | 1175 | Speed calling (30 numbers) | |||
| *77 | 1177 | Anonymous call rejection activation | |||
| *78 | 1178 | Do not disturb | |||
| *79 | 1179 | Do not disturb disable | |||
| *80 | 1180 | Call blocking disable | |||
| *81 | 1181 | Priority call disable | |||
| *82 | 1182 | Caller ID (per call) | *31#/183212 | 1470 | |
| *83 | 1183 | Selective call forwarding disable | |||
| *85 | 1185 | Caller ID disable | |||
| *86 | 1186 | Continuous redial cancel | |||
| *87 | 1187 | Anonymous call rejection deactivation | |||
| *88 | 1188 | Deactivate call forwarding on busy | |||
| *89 | 1189 | Last-call return cancel | |||
| *90 | 1190 | Conditional forward: Busy line | |||
| *92 | 1192 | Conditional forward: No answer | |||
| *94 | 1194 | Directed call pickup | |||
| *272 | Wireless Priority Service | ||||
See also
- Telephones portal
- Mobile dial code – Mobile Dial CodePages displaying short descriptions matching their page name
- Pat Fleet – Prompt voice for most U.S. AT&T implementations of VSC features
- Public switched telephone network – Aggregate of all public telephone networks
- Short code – Short telephone numbers for voice, text and MMS services from mobile phones
External links
This article incorporates public domain material from Federal Standard 1037C. General Services Administration. Archived from the original on January 22, 2022.
References
"Vertical Service Codes – Code Definitions". NationalNANPA.com. North American Numbering Plan Administrator. Retrieved July 30, 2022. https://nationalnanpa.com/number_resource_info/vsc_definitions.html ↩
"Vertical Service Codes – Code Definitions". NationalNANPA.com. North American Numbering Plan Administrator. Retrieved July 30, 2022. https://nationalnanpa.com/number_resource_info/vsc_definitions.html ↩
voyager (April 15, 1995). Erik Bloodaxe (ed.). "The #Hack FAQ". Phrack Magazine. p. 7. Retrieved March 18, 2013. http://www.phrack.com/issues.html?issue=47&id=7 ↩
"Vertical Service Codes – Code Assignments". NANPA.com. Neustar. Retrieved March 18, 2013. http://www.nanpa.com/number_resource_info/vsc_assignments.html ↩
1831 on landlines, or #31# from a mobile ↩
"HOW TO: block your number when calling someone". Telstra Exchange. Telstra. Retrieved May 28, 2017. https://exchange.telstra.com.au/how-to-block-your-number-when-calling-someone/ ↩
141 on landlines and #31# on mobiles ↩
*10# for Telstra services "Telstra Home Phones and Plans – Call Return" Archived March 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine /wiki/Telstra ↩
*69 on Optus HFC Telephony network. "Optus Personal – Using Call Return" This only allows one to return the last unanswered call, and can cost 35 cents per use. /wiki/Optus ↩
1361 to get number, 1363 to call back. "NewsRelease". NTT East. Retrieved June 20, 2013. "Number OSIRASE 136". NTT West. Retrieved June 20, 2013. http://www.ntt-east.co.jp/release/0007/000717b.html ↩
After dialing 1471, the caller can press "3" to automatically return the call. Previously free, since August 2004 the return call service incurs a charge. ↩
1832 on landlines, or *31# from a mobile ↩