fraudulent use of home phone line/number

basset · ‎17-03-2015

I have been charged £36.88 for a call I didn't make. It was to this number-09041961198- in February. I wasn't at home at the time and neither was anyone else. I asked Plusnet if they could ban calls to premium rate numbers and they said they can't. I have reported this to Phonepayplus.org and to action fraud.police.uk, but how do I stop it happening again and how do I get my money back?
Thanks

mwarby · ‎11-08-2014

Have you checked that when you call from your line, your number is displayed ? The reason for asking is to rule out a line swap, which can happen during fault repair

w23 · ‎08-01-2008

I'd suggest dialing 17070 and make sure your correct number is identified on the test.

Call me 'w23'
At any given moment in the universe many things happen. Coincidence is a matter of how close these events are in space, time and relationship.
Opinions expressed in forum posts are those of the poster, others may have different views.

pwatson · ‎26-11-2012

It would seem that you are not alone with problems with this number (in fact is the March 17th 'Anon' poster you?)
http://www.whosenumberisthis.co.uk/09041961198
Looks like fraud rather than a crossed line.

Townman · ‎22-08-2007

If there is evidence of systematic fraud in association with this number, one would hope that PlusNEt's legal team were looking into the matter. The link above has a very detailed post describing what is happening. It is related to iTunes purchases - the source IP address is available to an authority with the right to request it.

In another browser tab, login into the Plusnet user portal BEFORE clicking the fault & ticket links

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.

If this post helped, please click the Thumbs Up and if it fixed your issue, please click the This fixed my problem green button below.

basset · ‎17-03-2015

Thank you all. I dialled 17070 and the correct number is given. I emailed the company whose number was dialled - mobiletopup.co.uk and they have confirmed the purchase of an iTunes gift card for £20 and have given me the email address used. I will add that to my report to actionfraud.police.uk.
I'll post again if anything happens. Plusnet does not seem able to do anything other than check with BT that the call was made.

basset · ‎17-03-2015

I have just spoken to the Citizens' Advice help line - 03454040506. They confirmed that this is a criminal offence and have reported it to Trading Standards. They said I should write to PlusNet and ask for a refund and also ask them to notify me of any unusual activity on my phone line.

plusnettony · ‎24-07-2014

Thank you for your update.
This matter is already being dealt with by our support team. If you could please supply them with the crime reference number, it may help them with their investigations.
Thanks.

If this post resolved your issue please click the 'This fixed my problem' button

Tony T
Plusnet Help Team

basset · ‎17-03-2015

sorry, I was away but have done that now.
My concerns are twofold:
How do I get the money refunded? and
How do I get premium rate numbers barred from my line?
I have asked about a refund and was told you can't give me one
I have just had an online chat with someone and was told that you are not able to bar premium rate numbers. How then can I be certain that this won't happen again? I am thinking about taking my business to a company which can bar these numbers.
Thank you

plusnettony · ‎24-07-2014

We don't offer the facility to block premium rate numbers I'm afraid. Your refund will be looked into again, it depends on what happens with the investigation.
It can't be guaranteed that this won't happen again, but it's unlikely. I'm running a line test now just to double check everything. Please keep an eye on the bill in the short terms and check to ensure you calls are being added correctly.

If this post resolved your issue please click the 'This fixed my problem' button

Tony T
Plusnet Help Team

Kremmen · ‎13-04-2013

From reading this I get the impression that the purchase was made using a phone number to bill against? This sounds like it was done without actually making a call but the purchase simply linked to an existing number.
Quite worrying if this can be done.

Let's be careful out there !

Townman · ‎22-08-2007

...and if that can be done, call barring is not going to help, as the call was not dialled, it was simply billed and I doubt that was done in real time.

In another browser tab, login into the Plusnet user portal BEFORE clicking the fault & ticket links

Superusers are not staff, but they do have a direct line of communication into the business in order to raise issues, concerns and feedback from the community.

If this post helped, please click the Thumbs Up and if it fixed your issue, please click the This fixed my problem green button below.

picbits · ‎18-01-2013

It would be interesting to see how this fraud was achieved.
I suspect either two ways, one would be to tap into a line between the customer and exchange - extremely easy to do especially if you are only targeting a random line. Secondly would potentially be to spoof the CLID so the recipient system thinks a different number is calling.

basset · ‎17-03-2015

The company which received the call was mobiletopup.co.uk. They knew the call had been "made" from my number. There wasn't anyone in my house at the time of the call, so my line must have been used in some way. I am still waiting to hear from ActionFraud.
Thanks for your input
Basset

pwatson · ‎26-11-2012

Quote from: Townman
...and if that can be done, call barring is not going to help, as the call was not dialled,

Depending on the method used possibly not, but a customer has got a much stronger case to argue that the call can't have been made on from their premises if barring is in place