subcripition fraud and poor service

[Anonymous]

Frist thing is no safe guard in place to stop fraud on ppl account which needs to be resolved as a direct source of trusted payment to people's bank accounts. Spoke to 3 agents and they all said they couldn't stop it only remburse me for the extra amount which came out of my account and the only thing any one needs to set up this type of transaction is your phone number. Poor show 02. I also asked for a supervisor and zizo was the agent and hung up. Then called back spoke to amber and after explaining all again to her said i need to contact the subscription company who wanted my name and number to call me back and due to the nature of what happen wasn't to happy to do that so they told me to txt stop now sounds petty but if you txt stop you have given permission for that company to have taken that payment white out your authority to do it in the first place so NO not going to do that as 02 should be protecting people who have this issue. And due to being in a regulated Fca business myself can you update your complaints procedure to any verbal or written form of disatifaction verbal or in writing needs to now be taken as a complaint and not pushed hoping people won't compain because they have to put it is in writing again very poor. I also asked for a manger while I was on the phone and got told no none could take my call and someone would get back to me in 24hrs and still nothing again poor.

[MI5]

It's the same advice we give to everyone many times over.
It's all here if searched for.
All networks have to deal with the same issues and until a law is passed that shuts these parasites down completely it will continue to be a problem.

[jonsie]

It certainly isn't fraud by O2. It's a scam and O2 merely pass on the charges that you, inadvertently , subscribe to. How are they to know you didn't willingly sign up?

[Anonymous]

I respect the fact o2 isn't obigated through law but as a direct trusted source of payment they need to be doing more. A few ideas are things like get companies to register if they are going to use your phone bill to make payments. If not registered with them like the banks a do send a quick authorised txt to say if you are looking to make a charge of X amount If the correct if the company isn't registered with them or even giving customers a pin code to put in online.They really do need to be doing more to combat fraud and at the moment they work with them not against which is wrong.

[MI5]

It is completely wrong and more should be done.
We've said it before that it would be good for O2 to take the initiate but maybe this is something all the networks could work on together?

[jonsie]

They certainly could take the lead in preventing these scams but as it stands networks are quite happy to take their percenrage by acting as middlemen. I think it would need the governing bodies to force networks to protect their customers. At the moment, as fast as these companies are fined, they are at liberty to fold and open again with either a new short code or new name.

[madasaf1sh]

As we have seen on here in the last few days people do sign up to these things willingly, and o2 dont know if you signed up to these services via a website or an app.

The problem is too many people cry wolf when they sign up to these services then realise £100 down the line that its too much money and dont contact the service provider but the network they are on saying they didnt sign up so they want there money back exactly like a fraudulent charge back. 

A lot of these services when run professionaly and properly do have multiple texts to tell people that they are signing up, but there are always rogues in any industry!!, but like phone contracts people just blindly say yes to each one without reading them. Google us reverse text billing as do Apple.

Im sorry but a bit of personal responsibilty is needed sometimes, and if you install an app that says it need to able to send texts and you make calls as you i'd be wary. 

[gindygoo]

@jonsie I read a few of the judgements against these scumbags, and the fines were not to be sniffed at. It does however go to show how much the scammers are raking in if they can pay fines like this and still continue on in a new name/shortcode 😡