Defending The Net

Thank You From Texas
For Helping Out With The Auto-Dialer

Written by Defending The Net Contributing Author: Darren W. Miller

News Letter
Article ID: 1549

Darren / www.defendingthenet.com ,

Thank you for your assistance in resolving my issue with the “Auto-dialer” virus and the resulting huge phone bill, in excess of $1,000. When I received notification from MCI informing me of the 1-900 charges, I immediately felt nauseous.  I had no idea how the calls were made or how to go about resolving the situation.  I immediately notified AOL, my internet provider, and inquired about the situation.  The representative that I dealt with, via e-mail, was eager to help and described the various types of “Viruses” (for lack of a better term) that could be responsible for this type of activity.  The AOL representative forwarded information on the nature of the “Auto-dialer” and contained in the information was an article about the “Auto-dialer” virus, which was written by Darren Miller.  At the bottom of the article was contact information for Darren so I clicked on it and sent him an e-mail describing my situation?


Darren suggested that I unplug my computer from the telephone line, which I had already done, and then to call SBC, my telephone service provider, and explain the situation to them.  Darren also suggested that I call the credit reporting agencies to explain why SBC would probably be reporting a non-payment issue.  I had indicated to Darren that I was not going to pay the charges for the 1-900 calls.

I called SBC and talked to a Customer Service representative, after several transfers to different departments.  The SBC representative was very understanding and, to make a long story short, willing to assist me in relegating the long distance charges brought on by the “Auto-dialer”.  The bulk of the charges had not been submitted to SBC yet, but there were two calls to the Netherlands, or some far away place, that were showing, and the SBC representative issued a credit for those charges since my monthly statement had already been mailed.  He also said that he would monitor my account for the other charges and take care of them as well.  I had a feeling of calm come over me at this point and have nothing but praise for the SBC Customer Service department.

Similarly, I have nothing but praise for defendingthenet.com and Darren Miller for offering advice that resulted in resolution of my dire situation (it’s not completely over yet, but I am optimistic that it will be resolved completely).  I didn’t have a clue how to go about dealing with the charges without your advice.

Thank you Darren Miller, and www.defendingthenet.com, for responding to my e-mail and offering the proper advice for my situation. 

Sincerely,

Steve in Texas

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