How am I able to pick up some cable TV stations without cable service?

Question

OK, here's the details. My only TV is a nine year old set, obviously with an analog tuner. I don't have now, nor have I ever had cable service, or satellite for that matter, although my apt does have cable wiring from the previous tenant. However, the wiring is not attached to my TV, I use an indoor antenna.

My TV has a switch to indicate whether signals are received over the air or through cable. When I'm on the cable setting, I can receive a few cable channels. They are not very strong, they are definitely there, and one or two are coming in with a watchable picture. Again, this is without a cable attached to the TV, not to mention without cable service. I'm only using the rabbit ears.

So I have two questions. How is this possible, and why does this only happen with the 'cable or antenna' switch in the cable setting?

Answer 1

There is obviously a "leak" in the cable system.  This can be caused by a bad cable or connection somewhere close to your antenna that is allowing the cable signal to radiate into the air.  That's why the signal is weak.  You receive it on the "cable" setting because it is indeed a cable signal that "escaped".

Please come back and choose a best answer from all of those submitted.

Answer 2

Its possible but quite rare to intercept cable signals. Dish signals are much more possible to intercept.

Chances are that you might not have anything.

Answer 3

Some analog UHF channels are similar frequencies to cable channels 14 and above.

Answer 4

If the channels are cable only channels such as HBO, CNN, or the like then there is leakage from the cable distribution system in your apartment.  This means that the person who set up this system might have made these channels too strong to remain within the cable (to strong a signal to not leak out).  Or it may just be there are bad connections made by people who have split the cable for other tv sets within your apartment (they used wiring not meant for cable tv use - not enough shielding in the cable).

If the channels are not really cable channels then what you might be seeing has to do with the fact the some cable tv channels assignments are the same as the on air channels, namely channels 2 through 13, and some are just different numbers for almost the same frequency.