Hello & Cellphone Subscription (Scam??)

Hi Everyone

First time on the forum, have looked at various things on here before, but have never joined before. I am doing a joint “Hi” and “new topic” in one, as I am wanting some input from all of you. Let me start by saying Hi, my name is Sally, I am 35, an atheist and a skeptic, and I am currently on a mission.

What I am wanting to know is if any of you have been caught with these cellphone subscription (SCAMS as I call them) where you click on a game / ad banner and they want your cellphone number, and next thing you are being charged a daily fee. Now I haven’t as I have never provided any details, but my partner, who works at one of the cell phone service providers has. The thing is, he NEVER EVER clicks on things AND gives his details. He might click on a link either purposefully or accidentally, but never ever has he provided his details. With us both being sceptical we are thus fully aware of the consequences and therefore avoid getting caught even accidently. Even getting an sms that asks you to sms STOP to stop getting a companies correspondence we don’t reply to as I don’t want to risk getting charged for that STOP request.

Anyhow, he has just discovered that he is subscribed to one of these services (pocketflirt) after he received an itemised bill from his company showing that he owes them money (which will be deducted from his salary). Now he has 2 cellphones one is his work phone (which is the one with “pocketflirt” on) and the other is his personal phone (with another cellphone provider, that he had a contract with before he started working at this cellphone provider). Anyhow, he hardly uses his work cellphone, and therefore was easily able to pick up on this subscription that he never requested.

What I am wanting to know is if anyone else has had this problem, or has accidentally subscribed but knew that they did, as I want to know what happens when you subscribe. I suspect that someone has clicked on a link and inputted HIS cellphone number. Now I can’t check if these subscription services allow for this to happen, but it is the only thing that makes sense. He never received an sms saying he was subscribed, he only found out about it AFTER getting itemised billing and today for the first time he received an sms from pocketflirt, but never any prior daily smses.

My mission tonight, is to buy 2 prepaid starter packs and subscribe using one number via the other number.

Anyones input will be appreciated.

Regards,
Sally

Hi Sally, welcome first of all!

My youngest son inadvertedly got involved in such a scam a few months back and lost a loo full of money before he approached his father for help, took us around 2 months just to get the rubbish cancelled off his phone. I’m not all that familiar with the details of his particular scam, but I do know that Hello Peter is flooded with this type of complaints.

Good luck in sorting it out.

Hi Faerie

Thanks for that, I have already lodged a complaint with WASPA, will be contacting ICASA and DTI / Consumer protection. Want to see what WASPA say first, seems as they are looking the matter. My first thing is to get the money back (not much at the moment, but it is the principal of it) and to find out HOW exactly it happened. I used to think that perhaps people affected previously had ACTUALLY done something i.e. filling in their number, but I KNOW that neither of us would ever do that. Nevermind the fact that my partner doesn’t even know his work cell number off hand, when I was dealing with WASPA, my partner had to try remember what the number was, so there is no ways he could have accidentally have filled it in, if he had, he would use his personal number, cause he knows that one!!!

I am VERY suspicious that ANYONE can fill in your cellphone number on these things and then YOU are then subscribed. Yes, I have seen the complaints on hello peter. Carte blanche also did a thing on it (I didn’t see it though), but no-one is addressing the possibility of someone else subscribing you…

Hi Sally. Welcome.

The other day my mother came to me with such a problem, she was being charged R14 a week for games. She told me she would never sign up for anything and I believed her. Full of righteous anger I set on finding these evildoers and got quite the run around.

It turns out me dear old mom played a little online IQ game which only gave your score if you entered your cell phone and then enter a number they sms to your phone.

This has seemingly nothing to do with subscribing to anything but that is what they used to “confirm” her subscription.

We got it canceled but the company was based in the UK so I never got the satisfaction of wringing anyone’s necks 180 degrees.

I hope you get your problem sorted and that justice will prevail.