Phishing attempts are common via SMS, but some consumers also claim to having been swindled via premium text messages. Operators and network providers say they do all they can to prevent fraud.
"Usually I don’t even check my phone bill." Emmanuelle Hingray, a Belgian commuter from Arlon who works at the University of Luxembourg explains that in a regular month, she never experiences extra charges from her operator: "One day I saw that I was charged €45, then another €7.75, for a service I never requested." When she contacted POST Luxembourg, she was told that these were premium text messages she had subscribed to, but the operator said it was happy to block premium messages altogether in future. Emmanuelle says that the functionality of premium text messages was completely foreign to her: "So you have to wait to be defrauded to notice that", she writes in an email to the ministry of consumer protection.
You want more? Get access now.
-
One-year subscription€185.00/year
-
Monthly subscription€18.50/month
-
Zukunftsabo for subscribers under the age of 26€120.00/year
Already have an account?
Log in
