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did mine on 8002 12 hours
In response to the BS posted by the O2 rep:
Here's something for you to chew over:
1) paying Bango £1 to receive a £2.50 voucher to spend at O2, for a service I do not require and which offends me by its existence is NOT the definition of a reimbursement. Think about it - I am being told that if I don't want to humiliate myself in an O2 shop then I HAVE to pay Bango £1, and your method of refunding me is to give me credit that I HAVE to spend with you. I still have £1 spent on my credit card that I have to pay back myself.
That's so appalling, it's got to be illegal. And if it's isn't, it should be.
2) O2 did nothing whatsoever to publicise this beyond a single post on some blog they have that I've never heard of and do not subscribe to, indicating that they have a huge amount of disdain for their customers.
3) The CEO of O2, Matthew Key, was on BBC Radio 5 Live this weekend admitting that it wasn't ideal that they didn't tell customers, and that it would be something to look at in the future. Not a hint of genuine remorse there, or explanation as to what sort of attitude to customers leads to this policy getting past the CEO in the first place.
4) He also said he knew nothing about legit websites being blocked.
5) The entire process is undermined by ageverification.o2.co.uk where you can enter your mobile number and get a code to enter on the O2 website to remove the block.
6) There is no aspect of the process that currently works with iPads. You can't credit me with £2.50 as I don't have a rolling bill with O2 on my iPad. You can't use the ageverification.o2.co.uk page as an iPad cannot receive or display text messages. I refuse to walk into an O2 shop and ask permission to view over-18 websites from some shop assistant, as I was told to by the O2 Twitter account.
7) Any young adult with half a brain will find ways around this anyway: for example, get a pre-paid credit card online, or surf via a proxy service.
I managed to get my iPhone unblocked by simply calling 202 from my phone and telling the chap who answered I wanted the block taken off immediately. He asked my password and removed the block. Didn't ask my age: why not? Presumably because he has it on his system in the first place. But hang on, that system is the one that O2 claims is undermined by parents buying their kids mobiles and contracts. So what was the point of the AV check in the first place if it's so easily bypassed like this?
9) They're trying to Protect The Children but I expect more kids access the internet from PCs running O2's Home Broadband than do from smartphones running O2's Mobile Web. Will this blanket assumption that we are all underage viewers of porn extend to regular internet customers shortly?
10) O2's main argument is that parents buy their kids smartphones and contracts. They also buy them TV, so does that mean an inspector will call after 9pm to check up on your kids? Will my Xbox need to scan my birth certificate if I load an 18 game that was legally sold to me by a shop assistant who confirmed my age at the till?
No. It is the parents responsibilities, not mine and certainly not O2s. By taking responsibility for The Children by stopping everyone from viewing 'unsuitable' sites, surely they are insinuating some sort of ownership of or responsibility for the content of the internet?
I am unspeakably angry about the whole thing and have written a 3 page letter to Matthew Key, also copied to all the Complaints Services O2 have. If I don't get a decent reply I will send it and the reply to all the major trading standards bodies and newspapers.
It's moves like this that precipitate more freedom for the ISPs to monitor and block our internet use in the future.
Here's something for you to chew over:
1) paying Bango £1 to receive a £2.50 voucher to spend at O2, for a service I do not require and which offends me by its existence is NOT the definition of a reimbursement. Think about it - I am being told that if I don't want to humiliate myself in an O2 shop then I HAVE to pay Bango £1, and your method of refunding me is to give me credit that I HAVE to spend with you. I still have £1 spent on my credit card that I have to pay back myself.
That's so appalling, it's got to be illegal. And if it's isn't, it should be.
2) O2 did nothing whatsoever to publicise this beyond a single post on some blog they have that I've never heard of and do not subscribe to, indicating that they have a huge amount of disdain for their customers.
3) The CEO of O2, Matthew Key, was on BBC Radio 5 Live this weekend admitting that it wasn't ideal that they didn't tell customers, and that it would be something to look at in the future. Not a hint of genuine remorse there, or explanation as to what sort of attitude to customers leads to this policy getting past the CEO in the first place.
4) He also said he knew nothing about legit websites being blocked.
5) The entire process is undermined by ageverification.o2.co.uk where you can enter your mobile number and get a code to enter on the O2 website to remove the block.
6) There is no aspect of the process that currently works with iPads. You can't credit me with £2.50 as I don't have a rolling bill with O2 on my iPad. You can't use the ageverification.o2.co.uk page as an iPad cannot receive or display text messages. I refuse to walk into an O2 shop and ask permission to view over-18 websites from some shop assistant, as I was told to by the O2 Twitter account.
7) Any young adult with half a brain will find ways around this anyway: for example, get a pre-paid credit card online, or surf via a proxy service.
I managed to get my iPhone unblocked by simply calling 202 from my phone and telling the chap who answered I wanted the block taken off immediately. He asked my password and removed the block. Didn't ask my age: why not? Presumably because he has it on his system in the first place. But hang on, that system is the one that O2 claims is undermined by parents buying their kids mobiles and contracts. So what was the point of the AV check in the first place if it's so easily bypassed like this?9) They're trying to Protect The Children but I expect more kids access the internet from PCs running O2's Home Broadband than do from smartphones running O2's Mobile Web. Will this blanket assumption that we are all underage viewers of porn extend to regular internet customers shortly?
10) O2's main argument is that parents buy their kids smartphones and contracts. They also buy them TV, so does that mean an inspector will call after 9pm to check up on your kids? Will my Xbox need to scan my birth certificate if I load an 18 game that was legally sold to me by a shop assistant who confirmed my age at the till?
No. It is the parents responsibilities, not mine and certainly not O2s. By taking responsibility for The Children by stopping everyone from viewing 'unsuitable' sites, surely they are insinuating some sort of ownership of or responsibility for the content of the internet?
I am unspeakably angry about the whole thing and have written a 3 page letter to Matthew Key, also copied to all the Complaints Services O2 have. If I don't get a decent reply I will send it and the reply to all the major trading standards bodies and newspapers.
It's moves like this that precipitate more freedom for the ISPs to monitor and block our internet use in the future.
They might have relaxed the policy regarding the credit card requirement if you complain loudly enough. I just had the block removed on my phone by calling 202 and pointing out how ludicrous that this was hoisted on us without even the courtesy of informing us first. The guy on the other end started into the "I'll just need to take some credit card details...." speech but I shut him down by saying that I'd just proved who I am in order to speak to him, that I am the account holder and that you can see my bloody date of birth in front of you. After that he removed the block without needing any card details 
