Rogue dialler on a broadbamnd connection - please help!

Mortgage_&_debt_free

Hi

My OH got a phone bill with 385 calls to an 0870 number which we don't know & as far as we know haven't used.

She's got broadband and I thought this was only possible via dial up.
I've narrowed it down to 2 possibilities; either there is a rougue dialler on my PC, or the house alarm which is linked to a control centre is haywire. The alarm company says it's not one of their numbers.

The other thing is that the calls are for a max of 6 secs and all 385 calls come to just over £13. I would have thought if it was a malicious call they would have gone for a premium rate number.

BT have been worse than useless saying it's nothing to do with them, we have to pay and if we want to stop it we'll have to pay them £10 per quarter for the privelige!

OH at wits end, I'm getting more annoyed and don't know what to do.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

irishjohn

although you are on broadband it is likely that your PC has a modem installed and you may still have this plugged into the telephone socket. If you have it is unnecessary - unplug it and that will disable your pc from rogue dialling if it is trying to do so - but your broadband will still work

Mortgage_&_debt_free

Hi John, thanks for the reply.
The only connection to the telephone socket is via the USB cable via a BB filter.
Am I right in thinking this needs to be there?

Donnie

Have you traced the number in order to find out to whom it belongs?

dibbler69

Have you tried ringing the number and seeing who answers. You could also try the number in google and see what that pulls up.

Syman

you can also try the SAY NO TO 0870 website.

it may be listed there.

Mortgage_&_debt_free

Thanks all - I've rung the number and it sounds like a fax machine tone. It's not recognised on saynoto0870.

MadCowMan

Mortgage_&_debt_free wrote:

Hi John, thanks for the reply.
The only connection to the telephone socket is via the USB cable via a BB filter.
Am I right in thinking this needs to be there?

Yes thats correct - if you only have broadband set up , your phone wont be capable of dialing regular numbers. Have you anything else connected to a phoen line ( sky box etc ? )

Debt_Free_Chick

Mortgage_&_debt_free wrote:

Thanks all - I've rung the number and it sounds like a fax machine tone. It's not recognised on saynoto0870.

I think that's why the calls are only for 6 secs. Something is dialling the number, getting the fax machine's welcome "handshake" and then the fax is hanging up when there's no response - it expects a response from the sending fax machine.

Do you have any fax software installed on your PC? It could be that something is trying to send a fax. Odd though, if you have no modem connected to the phone line

superscaper

Debt_Free_Chick wrote:

I think that's why the calls are only for 6 secs. Something is dialling the number, getting the fax machine's welcome "handshake" and then the fax is hanging up when there's no response - it expects a response from the sending fax machine.

Do you have any fax software installed on your PC? It could be that something is trying to send a fax. Odd though, if you have no modem connected to the phone line

If the only connection to the phone line through the pc is the broadband modem then there is no physical way for the pc to dial a number number on that line. Do you have an Amstrad phone?

MadCowMan

Those horrible E-M@ailer things ? I thought they dialed up for longer than that for adverts.