Charged £4.50 instantly by clicking on Facebook ad.

principlecounts

Ridiculous. Yes, this is very real - even if you haven't recorded your phone number with Facebook. I've helped someone get their money back by contacting their mobile provider, and fortunately they helped by stopping further messages and refunding the initial £4.50 payment.

To me, something is very wrong here, and either Facebook or the mobile provider or both are complicit in allowing this activity to happen. I'm trying to find out in more technical detail how this happened from clicking the Facebook ad to being charged on the mobile phone bill.

A very similar scam is here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3580058/Thousands-hit-4-50-time-scam-Customers-facing-bills-hundreds-pounds-texts-advertising-gaming-services-pornographic-content.html

If anyone can help fill the gaps on how this works, I'll be interested to know. Happy to hear your experiences too of this specific fraudulent activity described in the subject. This annoys me very much, if I have enough information, I won't hesitate to take this issue directly to the authorities that can do something about it.

AndyPix

The only way for them to achieve this is by sending a MT (Mobile terminated) premium sms to you by skimming your number from the http headers that "some" operators send when you are using mobile internet.


This practice is illegal, and the service provider (premium sms company) will not be aware that their service is being abused in this way.
It is probly a "smash and grab" type operation, ie set it up, run it until they get noticed and shut down -dissapear ..


The best thing to do is to find out from your operator who the company responsible for sending the premium sms is (ie, the service provider - not the crook sending the sms) and let them know what is going on.
They will likely refund you and shut down the account of the criminal

principlecounts

"skimming your number from the http headers that "some" operators send when you are using mobile internet."

Yes, this detail I'm interested in. The number must have been sent the moment the Facebook ad was clicked, initiating an SMS to be sent, and the subscription charged to be billed. I'm not convinced the company behind this operation is unaware, I can't prove this yet without further information.

You're right about getting hold of the name of the company, the ICO office can do something about it with this information.

MrDouglas

you'd like to think FB policed their advertising more stringently, obviously not the case.

debitcardmayhem

MrDouglas wrote: »

you'd like to think FB policed their advertising more stringently, obviously not the case.

A jester joins facebook :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Robisere

Don't click.

No trick.