Discussions about O2 and age verification

[Anonymous]

Just received a text from TPTB saying I need to confirm I'm over 18 to view adult material. Until then, it'll remain blocked on my phone. I don't have a credit card so I'll need to do this in store. Just wondering, I have no particular desire to view pornographic material or register to flirt websites on my phone but if I don't have this ban lifted, will it affect my general day-to-day browsing in any way? Otherwise, I won't bother.
Secondly, when did this come about? Never needed to confirm my age in the past. And why couldn't they have sorted this in store when I bought the phone?

[Anonymous]

So, what exactly is O2's reason (emphasis added) to block Google Translate? Could we hear from Chris or someone please. (And I am still not going to give my card details to bango anyway.)

[browni]

Sorry I'm new here

Not new enough though to be able to add an advertising (spam) link to your sig?

[Anonymous]

Hi o2,
Can you please issue a rebate for my time lost removing the age restriction.
Thank you
Daniel
P.s from 1st of march until text received.

[Anonymous]

Sorry I'm new here

Not new enough though to be able to add an advertising (spam) link to your sig?

How is that classified as spam? You have a link in your signature. I included a link so admins could easily take a look at our site.
At the moment we don't even have any premium content on our app so we're not asking for any money, we provide a free service.
I have removed the image of our logo in case anyone was bothered by seeing a non-O2 logo here on the forum.

[Anonymous]

Am absolutely furious with O2 about this.
I have been blocked access to various mainstream sites regarding wine (the Wine Society, Oddbins, Majestics, Berry Brother & Rudd - the list goes on) since Wednesday.
Attempts to access these sites led me to a very dodgy looking Bango.net site which looked to be a typical phishing site asking for my credit card details. Giving such details (without any evidence that it was linked to O2 bar from the banner that any con man could have cut and pasted , without some email from from O2 warning of this) goes against everything we are told in terms of keeping data safe on the internet. All looked like a typical scam to me. Imagine the level of sympathy would of got from credit card company if it was a scam!! You can hear them saying you did what re your credit card number!!!
As a result I decided not to give my details and investigate what was going on by visiting the o2 website (assuming that there had been some hijacking of the site and would be message saying don't fall for this scam). Lo and behold there is a link to enable you to verification age requirment which didn't and still doesn't seem to work. Great work O2!!!!
I decide to go to the store and get them to verify my age. I dutifully turned up with photo id and all seemed to go well with chap saying was all sorted and my age verified (not withstanding fact that O2 already have this information - beach of data protection act principle re not retaining excess levels of data anyone!!) and was told would get text in a couple of minutes confirming could access sites. Still angry but thought at least is sorted (ha foolish me). Got text about 30 mins later, tried to access Wine Society site and get bounced to O2 wap page. Try as I might I cannot get passed the O2 wap page when trying to access any site they relates to reviews or purchase of wine.
I call O2 and was told rather blithly that " Yeh few people have had that problem - I will log it and it will hopefully be resolved in 2 day". Thanks a bunch O2!!!
Told them not good enough and that I was not going to pay for days I have been denied access. So far they have agreed 4 days credit. I remain less than hopeful that they will resolve issue by then and consider if they don't they are in breach of contract re provision of services as per their T&Cs entitling me to terminate under the terms of section 8 of those T&Cs. Notice to terminate will be issued by me if access is not restored by the 2 day period they have stated.
How O2 have dealt with this has been shambolic from the start and smacks of total and utter contempt for the paying customer or a mind boggling level of incompetence. Not sure which is worse!!!!

[Anonymous]

Have received further text confirming my age has been verified, but still get bounced to wap.O2.co.uk page when try and access any site relating to purchase or review of wine. Sort it out O2!!

[Anonymous]

What a pain in the backside this is!
What do I do since I have no credit card or photo ID (I don't drive or have a passport or anything similar)?!

[Anonymous]

I am not happy about this as well, The issue is this has been done without any communication from O2 to its customers.
I understand the reasoning behind it but not the way its been implemented.
I don't have a credit card and I would not put my details into a site that I don't know or trust.
I now have to go into town on a Saturday to try and sort this out.
Thanks O2
P.S. Please don't shout at the CS people ~(not that I am saying anyone here has)- its not their fault that management have messed up and not actually thought of the impact.

[Anonymous]

What a pain in the backside this is!
What do I do since I have no credit card or photo ID (I don't drive or have a passport or anything similar)?!

Call customer service, or if you get given the option to, you can do it via the online chat popup that gets offered while browsing the CS sections of the site.
I couldn't unblock myself via the card method ("Sorry you have exceeded the maximum number of attempts to use a credit card for age verification" without even putting in CC details, or ever having tried to remove this previously nonexistant restriction, wut?) so was navigating the site to get the landline customer service number, and got a chat popup - Told them I wanted unblocking, they just asked me to confirm my name and age, presumably cross-referenced it with my contract details, and unblocked me. Unrestricted access was restored within a couple of mins.
At least I didnt have to arse around going to the store, but particularly as theyre willing to unblock people via the online chat service, I rather wonder what the point of the block is on contracts in the first place. O2's justification for blocking contract customers (who are all inherantly over 18) is so that phones that've been given to kids but in daddy's name are "protected", but any kid that wants access to their porn can happily just chat to the CS agent and give daddy's name and birthday, and ta-da, block removed.
I'm grateful that there's a non awful way of removing the filtering, but being as it exists, it calls into question the whole point of the filtering in the first place.

[browni]

How is that classified as spam? You have a link in your signature.

I do have a link in my signature and it is to a broadband related site where O2 customers, and others. can go for help.
Your link was just plain advertising (spam)