frankhoofd
asked on
Hidden charges on the Internet?
Hi,
I live in Belgium and want to know something about hidden charges on the Internet. Unlike in the US we pay about $0.8 per hour to surf.
I am on the Internet about an hour a day, but recently my telephone bill is three times as high as it should be. And there are some charges on it that seem to be of 0900 numbers (pay per minute: I am not sure how this is called in the US).
I am sure that no one else has used my computer, and quite sure that I do not have a hacker problem. Also I do not visit pornographic or warez sites, but do download a lot of software.
What I like to know is: how do you know if you are connected to a 0900 number?
And can an owner of a site charge you in other ways, without you knowing it (until you receive your telephone bill).
Thanks,
Frank
I live in Belgium and want to know something about hidden charges on the Internet. Unlike in the US we pay about $0.8 per hour to surf.
I am on the Internet about an hour a day, but recently my telephone bill is three times as high as it should be. And there are some charges on it that seem to be of 0900 numbers (pay per minute: I am not sure how this is called in the US).
I am sure that no one else has used my computer, and quite sure that I do not have a hacker problem. Also I do not visit pornographic or warez sites, but do download a lot of software.
What I like to know is: how do you know if you are connected to a 0900 number?
And can an owner of a site charge you in other ways, without you knowing it (until you receive your telephone bill).
Thanks,
Frank
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
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Usually on the Internet...you have to give them your credit card number....I've been surfing the Internet for 3 or 4 years and I've only seen sites that ask for credit card numbers...yeah...definitel
> I read about a year ago that someone had put a piece
> of software on his site. At the same time that people
> were downloading it, they were connected to an
> expensive porn site (they did not know this).
> So the visitors also received a high telephone bill.
You heard a very-mangled version of the scheme!
First, you had to completely download the software.
Then, when you installed it, it would "silence" your modem,
and then place an international long-distance telephone-call,
through your modem, and then download the pornography.
If you didn't notice that your modem had disconnected
from your ISP, and had reconnected, your long-distance
charges could accumulate. Your modem had been "silenced",
so you would not have heard the usual modem-noises.
> can an owner of a site charge you in other ways,
> without you knowing it
> (until you receive your telephone bill).
Not "directly", if you connect to their site via the Internet,
since they cannot "trace" you back to your telephone-number.
But, for an international call, your local telephone company
bills you, and then they share your money with the telephone
company in the destination-country.
Perhaps, the destination-site would have a "revenue-sharing"
arrangement with their telephone-company,
so that they received some of the destination-country's
telephone-company's share of the long-distance charges.
Thus, some of your long-distance money gets into the
pockets of the owner of the telephone-number
which the "rogue" software called.
> of software on his site. At the same time that people
> were downloading it, they were connected to an
> expensive porn site (they did not know this).
> So the visitors also received a high telephone bill.
You heard a very-mangled version of the scheme!
First, you had to completely download the software.
Then, when you installed it, it would "silence" your modem,
and then place an international long-distance telephone-call,
through your modem, and then download the pornography.
If you didn't notice that your modem had disconnected
from your ISP, and had reconnected, your long-distance
charges could accumulate. Your modem had been "silenced",
so you would not have heard the usual modem-noises.
> can an owner of a site charge you in other ways,
> without you knowing it
> (until you receive your telephone bill).
Not "directly", if you connect to their site via the Internet,
since they cannot "trace" you back to your telephone-number.
But, for an international call, your local telephone company
bills you, and then they share your money with the telephone
company in the destination-country.
Perhaps, the destination-site would have a "revenue-sharing"
arrangement with their telephone-company,
so that they received some of the destination-country's
telephone-company's share of the long-distance charges.
Thus, some of your long-distance money gets into the
pockets of the owner of the telephone-number
which the "rogue" software called.
ASKER
Thanks you both for your answers. I do not think it is fair that
only SirCaleb gets the points, but there is no "sharing" option.
I am sure that I will ask other questions in the future. When you
answer, I will make it up to you by increasing the points to 200
Otta. Your answer also made a lot clear.
Thanks again!
only SirCaleb gets the points, but there is no "sharing" option.
I am sure that I will ask other questions in the future. When you
answer, I will make it up to you by increasing the points to 200
Otta. Your answer also made a lot clear.
Thanks again!
There is no "automatic" way of "sharing" points.
However, there is a "manual" method.
Go to the "Customer Service" topic,
and indicate that you want to share NN points to AAA
and MM points to BBB for question KKKKKKKKKK,
and the "system-manager" for Experts-Exchange
will do the rest.
Don't bother to do it this time -- I'm only stating this
for "reference" purposes.
However, there is a "manual" method.
Go to the "Customer Service" topic,
and indicate that you want to share NN points to AAA
and MM points to BBB for question KKKKKKKKKK,
and the "system-manager" for Experts-Exchange
will do the rest.
Don't bother to do it this time -- I'm only stating this
for "reference" purposes.
ASKER
Those sites do charge visitors a certain amount per minute, so it
is possible. I do not know if such sites and other pay per minute
sites can be recognised in any way while surfing. When you call any 0900 number in Belgium, you are warned that you will
have to pay an amount per minute. If you do not agree you can hang up. But I do not know how this works on the Internet.
Thanks again