In the cracking scene of the 1980s, demon dialing was a technique by which a computer would repeatedly dial a number (usually to a crowded modem pool) in an attempt to gain access immediately after another user had hung up. The expansion of accessible internet service provider connectivity since that time more or less rendered the practice obsolete. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into black hat. ... The 1980s decade refers to the years from 1980 to 1989, inclusive. ... An illustration of a modern personal computer. ... A modem (a portmanteau word constructed from modulator and demodulator) is a device that modulates a carrier signal to encode digital information, and also demodulates such a carrier signal to decode the transmitted information. ... An Internet service provider (ISP, also called Internet access provider) is a business or organization that offers users access to the Internet and related services. ...

A similar technique was sometimes used to get the first call for prizes in radio "call-in" shows, thus leading to the adoption of random "fifth caller," "seventeenth caller" etc. by radio stations to circumvent this practice.

Demon dialing is sometimes used as a synonym for War dialing, a related technique which also involves automating a computer modem in order to repeatedly place telephone calls. War dialing or wardialing was a technique in the 1980s and 90s by which a computer would repeatedly dial a number (usually to a crowded modem pool) in an attempt to gain access immediately after another user had hung up. ...

See also: Wardriving War driving is often a surreptitious activity: this long-range wardriver leaves only his shadow. ...