# 555 Phone numbers

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/555-phone-numbers/417561>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 31, 2007, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/555-phone-numbers/417561 "2007-08-31T01:09:52Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![goofball](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e56c9b/32.png) [@goofball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goofball)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2007, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/555-phone-numbers/417561/1 "2007-08-31T01:09:52Z")

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I remember when a 555-xxxx number was always fake, but lately it seems the phone company has been restricting which 555 numbers can be used as fake numbers.

I was wondering why? Is the phone company running out of phone numbers to give to people?

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**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2007, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/555-phone-numbers/417561/2 "2007-08-31T01:16:03Z")

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[555 numbers](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calling_code):

> [@](#):
>
> However, today only numbers beginning with 555–01xx are reserved for fiction and other 555-numbers can be allocated to “information providers”. A side effect of the fictional-number pool being reduced to 100 numbers is that the same ones now often recur in different movies or TV shows. The “958” and “959” exchanges have also been reserved for similar purposes in most localities, and as a result very few individuals or businesses have telephone numbers beginning with those sets of digits either (although this fact is not as well known, so such numbers have not been used in a fictional context).

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**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2007, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/555-phone-numbers/417561/3 "2007-08-31T01:45:26Z")

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In California, we’re about to \*\*gain \*\*thousands of telephone numbers: AT&T is discontinuing the time announcement service. No more calling POPCORN to listen to the nice woman with the droning voice. All the “767” prefixes will be freed up in Northern California. In SoCal, people will have access to the “853-XXXX” numbers.