I was stumbling through the net and found this about dirtyhippo. Saw similar kinds of outrage by other subscribers too, but I forgot to bookmark the pages. Here is on at ripoffreport.
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Charged $9.99 three times over eight days for Dirtyhippo downloads. Big mistake, never did this, but Verizon Wireless said they can do nothing.
This is how the scam works. Dirtyhippo gets your cell phone number. Anybody can enter your cell phone number on their website. They send a text message to your cell phone. As soon as they send it, they bill you for $9.99, even if you do not respond to the text message.
This is the biggest billing scam. If you complain to Verizon, they tell you to call Verizon Wireless. When you call Verizon Wireless, they say nothing can be done. I am out $29.97
I didn't pay the charges and complained. It took two months and I got a shutoff notice. So I had to pay these rediculous charges to keep my cell phone.
Len
Princeton, New Jersey
U.S.A.
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Friday, February 23, 2007
Dirty ringtone, dirty picture message and sms scams.
Cell phone owners who hastily pay their monthly bill may want to slow down and pay closer attention to the itemized charges, as a growing number of consumers complain that they're being billed for services they never authorized or used.
Buried deep in pages-thick bills lurk charges from third-party companies such as Jamster, Flycell, Blinko and other providers of ring tones, wallpaper and other options that are easily overlooked. Some charges come from the carriers themselves.
The amounts are typically small often less than $10 a month but to the many who insist they got nothing in return, the charges smack of a widespread white-collar scam.
"There's a real lack of adequate disclosure," said JoAnn Carrin, a spokeswoman for the Florida attorney general's office. Her agency is investigating allegations of fraud against Blinko, a company formerly known as Dirty Hippo.
The probe centers on negative-option subscriptions, which are services that automatically take effect unless the consumer rejects them.
"People don't realize once you give them your credit card number, they pretty much can charge you with anything they want," Carrin said.
The Federal Communications Commission received more than 10,000 complaints in 2005 from cell phone customers who were unhappy with rate or billing practices.
As the number of cell phone users continues to explode, with more than 207 million subscribers in the United States alone roughly 70% of the nation's population so do add-on services, such as the option of downloading popular songs for ring tones or games such as Texas Hold 'Em.
In fact, ring tone revenues account for roughly 40% of a $1.8 billion cell phone entertainment industry, according to the Yankee Group, a Boston-based wireless research firm.
Jared Humphrey thought it would be fun to have his cell phone sound like a police siren when it rang, so he responded to a Jamster TV ad he thought was offering a free ring tone. When he learned it would cost $2.99, he said, he canceled his order. Months later he was still being charged, he said.
Humphrey was so irked by Jamster's tactics that he started an online petition called "Stop Jamster" aimed at changing the way the company runs its business. So far nearly 2,000 people have signed it, adding comments about Jamster such as "misleading, deceptive, frauds and cheats."
"I thought it was kind of scandalous," Humphrey said. "Once you've sent an initial text message, it's almost impossible to get in touch with them."
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Elsa C. Lamelas of Shorewood complained to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and to the Wisconsin attorney general's office, calling Jamster's billing fraudulent, after her then-14-year-old son was charged $12 for ring tones he said he never downloaded.
Lamelas said her son responded to a cable TV ad to get a free ring tone by contacting Jamster on his phone, which he did. But when he learned there was a $1.99 charge, he rejected the offer, she said in a written complaint. Jamster continued to bill him for ring tones he never received, Lamelas said.
"While the amounts involved are not large . . . this conduct multiplied by the thousands, would result in a fraud of significant dimensions," she wrote.
Jamster denied any wrongdoing but ultimately refunded her money.
Jamster is also named in a class-action lawsuit in California that alleges the company, a subsidiary of VeriSign Inc., targets children with false advertising.
A Jamster representative called the lawsuit frivolous and said the company has never advertised a free ring tone.
"We believe it's very clear in our advertising . . . what the consumer gets," said Jamster spokesman Brian O'Shaughnessy. "The vast majority clearly understand what they're getting into."
Company changes practices
However, O'Shaughnessy said Jamster changed its advertising and subscription methods this year to make products and charges more transparent to consumers. Anybody who wants to download a ring tone or subscribe to any service now has to respond "yes" twice, he said.
"A lot of that (negative perception about Jamster) is residual stuff from the initial way this was represented," he said. "We've changed the way we presented this."
The Mobile Marketing Association, which establishes best practices for service providers, said the so-called "double opt in" subscription method is now the industry standard for any product or service that carries an additional charge.
"Since May 2005 . . . they all adhere to these guidelines," said Laura Marriott, executive director of the Boulder, Colo.-based association. "They have to adhere as part of membership. . . . As an industry, we're really trying to protect consumers."
Cell phone service providers such as Cingular, U.S. Cellular and others say they stress to parents the importance of talking to their children about what they can and can't do with their cell phones. More than 14 million cell phone users are between the ages of 8 and 17, according to a recent report by Advertising Age. From Milwaukee sentinel
Blinko 42222 sms text message scam.
Blinko is a provider for ringtones for cell phones. The monthly service listed on web address is $9.99; $1.99 for ringtones & 3.99 for pics. However, each time you receive a text from this company, you will be charged 9.99. It is very difficult to reach this company or to get a response. The 800 # does not have a live operator, you are directed to customer care on the web which consists of you typing in your concern and waiting for weeks for a response. The 888 # doesn't even have a dial tone. The mobile media # did not work either.
Most probably you will not get a refund for all the charges because Blinko incurred charges for their services(sending a text message).
They show up in your bill as #42222, if you are getting scammed. Call your phone company and ask them to block this number, although you will have to pay any outstanding charges.
This is what people are saying about Blinko aka #42222
Post #1
Blinko is a horrid company and it is very difficult to get them to stop. The only way for sure is to change the number, but them the next poor schmuck who gets the old number will be screwed, more than likley this is waht happened here
Post #2
True, but Verizon has some level of responsibility here (or they should). If they are going to reuse lines, then they need to be able to clean the line or block subscriptions from previous users. If not, then they have some fiscal responsibility to reimburse the user for their time and troubles. I'm sure if Verizon put a little weight behind their requests, companies like Blinko would back off in their fiendish ways of getting out money...
Post #3
Blinko is essentially a scam. They advertise "get your free ringtone" and way down in the terms of service, you are 'agreeing' to be charged for premium text messages in the future Dirty Hippo is like. SMS.AC is like this. Jamster is the same. They're all evil. They prey on kids.
Since the charges are coming from a third party, Verizon and all the cell providers say "take it up with them." They won't do anything for you.
And, it's really common for them to already have been charging your phone number before you got, if someone else signed up.
Cancel. See how it goes. It theres another charge, you're going to have to change your numer.
Post #4
I got hit with the &9.99 charge on my wife's phone, had the number for 4-5 yrs now. I called Verizon was told there was nothing they could do and gave me 3 numbers for Blinko to try, I asked if I had a problem with Blinko who could I call, I was told to contact a data rep. Called the 1st number was told they were just the middle man and could only request to cancel the services. I called verizon and got a data rep and got the same old song and dance (nothing they could do), this rep told me to change my number. The first rep put a block on my txt messages (never use it anyway). The 2nd rep gave me 2 more numbers, one was disconnected and the other was an automated one. Called verizon data rep and got a guy who I apologized first then laid into him and asked for a supervisor, he listened told me he knew all about this and that alot of people are getting spammed. He immediately gave me a $9.99 credit and said the block should be enought and that I would not have to change my number. We'll see next month.
If you have any insight or opinion on this whole Blinko #42222 thing, post a comment.
Most probably you will not get a refund for all the charges because Blinko incurred charges for their services(sending a text message).
They show up in your bill as #42222, if you are getting scammed. Call your phone company and ask them to block this number, although you will have to pay any outstanding charges.
This is what people are saying about Blinko aka #42222
Post #1
Blinko is a horrid company and it is very difficult to get them to stop. The only way for sure is to change the number, but them the next poor schmuck who gets the old number will be screwed, more than likley this is waht happened here
Post #2
True, but Verizon has some level of responsibility here (or they should). If they are going to reuse lines, then they need to be able to clean the line or block subscriptions from previous users. If not, then they have some fiscal responsibility to reimburse the user for their time and troubles. I'm sure if Verizon put a little weight behind their requests, companies like Blinko would back off in their fiendish ways of getting out money...
Post #3
Blinko is essentially a scam. They advertise "get your free ringtone" and way down in the terms of service, you are 'agreeing' to be charged for premium text messages in the future Dirty Hippo is like. SMS.AC is like this. Jamster is the same. They're all evil. They prey on kids.
Since the charges are coming from a third party, Verizon and all the cell providers say "take it up with them." They won't do anything for you.
And, it's really common for them to already have been charging your phone number before you got, if someone else signed up.
Cancel. See how it goes. It theres another charge, you're going to have to change your numer.
Post #4
I got hit with the &9.99 charge on my wife's phone, had the number for 4-5 yrs now. I called Verizon was told there was nothing they could do and gave me 3 numbers for Blinko to try, I asked if I had a problem with Blinko who could I call, I was told to contact a data rep. Called the 1st number was told they were just the middle man and could only request to cancel the services. I called verizon and got a data rep and got the same old song and dance (nothing they could do), this rep told me to change my number. The first rep put a block on my txt messages (never use it anyway). The 2nd rep gave me 2 more numbers, one was disconnected and the other was an automated one. Called verizon data rep and got a guy who I apologized first then laid into him and asked for a supervisor, he listened told me he knew all about this and that alot of people are getting spammed. He immediately gave me a $9.99 credit and said the block should be enought and that I would not have to change my number. We'll see next month.
If you have any insight or opinion on this whole Blinko #42222 thing, post a comment.
Funkyfones.us ringtone / subscription sms scam
This is another scam already ripping off people. If you are unfortunate enough to be subscribed to their service, you will see $20 charge on your bill, every month. Talking to your phone company might help or you can try sending an SMS to 89623 with the word "stop" in the message. It may help, but I am not counting on it.
Free ringtone scams : And the scammers that rip teenagers off.
Try searching google, yahoo or msn for free ringtones and you will see umpteen ads being displayed for websites that are offering free ringtones for you to download.
Now you have to give your phone number and most probably click on the "I agree" to the terms and conditions box, and most often than not people cannot care less of the small fine print they have on the "Terms and Conditions" page. Upon submission you will be taken to the next page where they will send a PIN number to your phone and ask you to verify. Once you recieve the number and verify the PIN, they will send you a free ringtone, but subscribe you to a service that costs anywhere from $9.95 to $15.95 per month.
A not so nice way to get ripped and a clever scam. The victims are mostly teenagers so in the end it's their parents who in end have to foot the bill.
There are many companies that are doing this sort of scam or fraud if you call it that. There is more novel twist to this.
Apparently, if you call in to "American Idol" and some other shows too, this kind of un called for "subscription" offer also tags along, and you won't know untill the bill comes home.
There is not much you can do about it, except complaining to your phone company and asking them to block the number which shows up in your bill against the "subscription" charge.
Sometime you can pressurise your phone company to waive off the subscription charge by telling them you didnot subscribe to it willingly in the first place, and the so called subscription offered tagged along, in some sneaky way, you were not aware off.
It may help or it may not depending upon your phone company or the customer service rep you talk to.
I am trying to find ways of stopping this sort of scammy-subscription offers. As soon a I find something I will write it in here.
Now you have to give your phone number and most probably click on the "I agree" to the terms and conditions box, and most often than not people cannot care less of the small fine print they have on the "Terms and Conditions" page. Upon submission you will be taken to the next page where they will send a PIN number to your phone and ask you to verify. Once you recieve the number and verify the PIN, they will send you a free ringtone, but subscribe you to a service that costs anywhere from $9.95 to $15.95 per month.
A not so nice way to get ripped and a clever scam. The victims are mostly teenagers so in the end it's their parents who in end have to foot the bill.
There are many companies that are doing this sort of scam or fraud if you call it that. There is more novel twist to this.
Apparently, if you call in to "American Idol" and some other shows too, this kind of un called for "subscription" offer also tags along, and you won't know untill the bill comes home.
There is not much you can do about it, except complaining to your phone company and asking them to block the number which shows up in your bill against the "subscription" charge.
Sometime you can pressurise your phone company to waive off the subscription charge by telling them you didnot subscribe to it willingly in the first place, and the so called subscription offered tagged along, in some sneaky way, you were not aware off.
It may help or it may not depending upon your phone company or the customer service rep you talk to.
I am trying to find ways of stopping this sort of scammy-subscription offers. As soon a I find something I will write it in here.
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