Virgin Mobile fined for pushing mobile spam

Virgin Mobile has been fined for sending spam messages to Australian mobile users who'd already opted out of receiving promotions. The carrier was fined AU$22,000 (US$20,240) after it was found to have sent messages to mobile subscribers who had clearly stated their preference not to receive unsolicited text message ads. The …

[irish donkey]

Virgin told me the couldn't stop the mobile spam

and they didn't make any profit even thought I was charged 1.50 a pop.

Only answer then DUMP them. They are $hit anyway.

[Anonymous Coward]

Service message spam

I get topless model spam texts (Danielle Lloyd, if you must know...) on my Virgin Mobile phone that arrive labelled as service messages. Either they have an insider up to no good or they aren't entirely in control of their own network.

I previously had a similar problem with Orange, whose call centre drone flatly denied that such a thing was possible.

[pitagora]

The title is required, and must contain letters and/or digits.

doesn't really have to be an insider. You can send sms messages to come from any number, and you don't need somebody working at your telephone company. An yes of course, it's legal.

[Robert Carnegie]

@irish donkey I think you had a different problem

You seem to be describing the condition of being subscribed to a third-party service that you no longer want.

Officially, in the UK, as far as I know, every such service s[rving us must terminate immediately if you send a reply saying only

STOP

I have heard that text messages aren't guaranteed to be delivered, so you might want to do it twice. It won't get you your money back and you're right that your phone company won't care so bad luck. Maybe you should give up.

"PhonepayPlus is the regulator for phone-paid services in the UK and an agency of Ofcom", allegedly. They don't care very much really either.

[irish donkey]

@ Rob @irish donkey

You are of course correct. I was joined to a subscription service which I couldn't get out of. I never joined the scheme and despite numerous 'STOP' which were acknowledged by the company again at a cost of 1.50 they still came.

Virgin as I said we no help. I eventually got some money back by reporting them to 'Grumbletext'. Moved now and am with O2 with a bar against premiere texts.

Much better service from them

[John Tserkezis]

They make it difficult.

I was getting spam from my carrier here, Optus. When I called, they said they can't stop the spam alone - the *ONLY* way to stop the spam, is to opt out of *ALL* messages from Optus, including service and warning and other informational messages.

So I did. That kept them quiet for a while, got a spattering of some odd one-off spam here and there, a few words threatening to move to another carrier, and nothing since.

And that's not to menion the third-party spam that I did NOT subscribe to, but you can't do anything about that other than call the company responsible and give them an earful. That is, if they actually exist past a recorded message...

Yep, one big fat middle finger to the users...

[Visual Echo]

Mandantory in the US

Bitch all you want... they absolutely demand the right to send you incredibly irritating garbage in the US.

They sent a 'Support Haiti' all points bulletin 9 days after the quake... it appeared to be a cheap afterthought that late.

If there were *any* other choice for a no-contract paygo provider here, I'd dump them.