BURLINGTON, Vt. -
Like clock work. It comes once a month, but if you're not keeping a close eye on your cell phone bill, there's a good chance you could be scammed.
UVM Student Sam Lucci says he probably wouldn't notice any unauthorized fees on his cell phone bill.
It's called wireless cramming, where websites or companies flood your inbox with useless text messages like the joke of the day, daily horoscope, or celebrity gossip and then charge you for those services without you knowing it.
Federal and local officials are pushing to take action at the Vermont State House. For instance, the State Attorney General Consumer Protection Unit is investigating wireless cramming right now.
"We reached out to a number of Vermonters to ask them to take a look at their bills and to see whether certain charges were authorized...and then we've done a scientific study to try to see if we could replicate what we had done more informally," Bill Sorrell, Vermont Attorney General, said.
While Sorrell tells us wireless cramming proves to be a big problem in Vermont, it also seems to be a problem all over. The Federal Communication Commission or FCC estimates as many as 20 million people are crammed each year nationwide. Only 1 in 20 even realize it.
"I had to question it 2 months back to back," Michael Hoyt, of South Burlington, Vt., said.
Hoyt is part of the 5% who did take notice.
"So you know specifically what your bill is supposed to be once a month," Jackie Morlock asked.
"Yes, because once I was quoted from the AT&T carrier I said this is what I have to budget for the month and then all of the sudden I open up my bill and it's 30, 40, 50 dollars more than I was told," Hoyt said.
He actually whipped out his cell phone bill and came over to us on Burlington's Church Street this day to explain how he had been crammed.
"AT&T said it was texting spam," Hoyt said.
John Walls works with CTIA, the Wireless Association, which represents all wireless cell phone providers. He acts as there advocate in Washington when it comes to any legal issues or debate over potential legislation.
He tells me federal officials are doing some legwork of their own.
"The FCC and FTC- The Federal Trade Commission both have an avid interest in this kind of consumer protection," Walls said.
In the meantime, he says, all wireless providers want to keep customers happy. That's why those companies take complaints very seriously.
"Every major carrier has successfully prosecuted cases in court where there have been these kinds of infringements on their customers," Walls said.
Most importantly, both he and Sorrell urge you to check your cell phone every month. If you believe you've been scammed contact the Vermont Attorney General's office.
You should also file a complaint with your wireless provider who can help you block your number from being crammed again.
Like Hoyt, your wireless provider could even credit you back some or all of why you lost.
"I've had to go back and have as much as 152.96 credited on my account," Hoyt said.
Here are some tips from AT&T:
Read your monthly phone bill thoroughly. If you do not understand the charges, call the telephone number listed at the top of the bill. If you believe you have been charged incorrectly, contact the third party listed on your AT&T bill. Request that third-party charges be blocked from your bill.
Avoid placing calls to 900 numbers
Avoid accepting collect calls, signing up for sweepstakes or contests online or generally entering your contact info in places that are not considered "secure"
Discuss all charges with other members of your household
Always read the "fine print" and know what you're signing up for
For additional tips, visit www.att.com/safety <http://www.att.com/safety>
And, here's some other info you might be interested in:
Blocking Spam Phone Calls/Texts:
We don't sell any of our wireless numbers and work diligently to keep our customers informed of scams. We highly recommend you visit the Government Do Not Call Registry with your number, which can be found at <https://www.donotcall.gov/>.
Five ways to control SMS and MMS:
1) To restrict the sources of email that reach your phone, visit <http://mymessages.wireless.att.com>
2) Or reply to unwanted email messages with BLOCK in the body of the response to prevent future messages from that sender
3) Reply to unsolicited short codes with STOP in the body of the response to prevent future messages from that short code
4) To block phone calls and SMS from specific 10-digit numbers, sign up for AT&T Smart Limits for Wireless™ at <http://att.com/smartlimitsforwireless>
5) If no other solution works, please contact AT&T Customer Care for additional assistance
