It was considered by one of the prank organizers as a "perfect prank" since compared this to some funny tees and pranks ideas, its not like those stupid stuff and shocking pranks that could hurt anyone. It was just simply funny. Though school officials weren't laughing.
Menlo-Atherton High School was delayed for two school hours Friday after senior class prank students arranged to auto-dial 1,700 families at 6:40 a.m. to tell them not to come in until 9:50 a.m. because of a power failure.
The school found it quite alarming since at first they thought that the students had hacked into the computer system to use the school's auto-dial system - a serious behavior code offense if not an illegal one.
But to there surprise it was much easier than that. In short, the students typed "auto dialer" into Google. They learned that there are companies that did that kind of thing.
Students spent some time keying in the phone numbers off the school directory. Which is made available to all students. They filed it into an electronic file and then gave it to the company which collected $150 from classmates to pay for it and waited.
The 45 or so students who participated in the planning and execution did, to be fair, run it by a couple of parents who gave them the green light, according to the graduating senior.
"It was better than Christmas morning," the prankster said. "I was up at 6:30 counting down the seconds to 6:40."
Teachers and administrators then waited for two hours after the first bell for students to show up.
District officials said the school was investigating the incident, which occurred on the last regular day of school before finals start Monday.
"At this time, it is believed that there has been no breach of the school's telecommunications or student information system," said Sequoia Union High School District spokeswoman Bettylu Smith.
The incident followed what the student said was a decoy prank earlier this month that included putting more than 30 plastic traffic signs on the roof of the school to lull administrators into false security. It apparently worked.
"We're pretty happy with the outcome," said the student, who plans to attend community college with the hope of attending Stanford University someday. "Teachers were calling it the best prank at M-A. It's another win for the students."
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Menlo-Atherton High School was delayed for two school hours Friday after senior class prank students arranged to auto-dial 1,700 families at 6:40 a.m. to tell them not to come in until 9:50 a.m. because of a power failure.
The school found it quite alarming since at first they thought that the students had hacked into the computer system to use the school's auto-dial system - a serious behavior code offense if not an illegal one.
But to there surprise it was much easier than that. In short, the students typed "auto dialer" into Google. They learned that there are companies that did that kind of thing.
Students spent some time keying in the phone numbers off the school directory. Which is made available to all students. They filed it into an electronic file and then gave it to the company which collected $150 from classmates to pay for it and waited.
The 45 or so students who participated in the planning and execution did, to be fair, run it by a couple of parents who gave them the green light, according to the graduating senior.
"It was better than Christmas morning," the prankster said. "I was up at 6:30 counting down the seconds to 6:40."
Teachers and administrators then waited for two hours after the first bell for students to show up.
District officials said the school was investigating the incident, which occurred on the last regular day of school before finals start Monday.
"At this time, it is believed that there has been no breach of the school's telecommunications or student information system," said Sequoia Union High School District spokeswoman Bettylu Smith.
The incident followed what the student said was a decoy prank earlier this month that included putting more than 30 plastic traffic signs on the roof of the school to lull administrators into false security. It apparently worked.
"We're pretty happy with the outcome," said the student, who plans to attend community college with the hope of attending Stanford University someday. "Teachers were calling it the best prank at M-A. It's another win for the students."
See related products:
Resource