Airtel - Scam of prepaid numbers
Unauthorized Deductions from Prepaid Cards

Please note that a relative of ours had taken a prepaid number yesterday in Dehra Dun. Her outgoing is activated but somehow the incoming calls to this number are not going through.

To make matters worse, there have been deductions from her number on the pretext of internet use, ISD calls etc with the result that the top of Rs. 50 is letf to Rs. 20 wihtout any knowledge and information to her.

I would like to point out over here the scam all the mobile phone operators are running under the pretext of valu added services / additional services.

Unsuspecting customers (which is the major population of India) using the prepaid connections are mostly unaware of certain by default settings by the mobile phone operators at the time of starting new services.

For exmaple my mother balance kept reducing by Rs. 3 every 1 hours becuyase she would get an SMS saying that your last call balance is so and so. There is nohing else mentioned in the sms to make a customer aware that if you clik OK on this sms a further Rs. 3 will eb deducted.

Then ther eis the menace of hello tunes and all kinds of quizes / trivia questions which keep coming by sms. Befor you know what to do and whythe sms has come and becuase no information is given by the dealer or airtel customer support that such sms needs to be canceled or what needs to be done to avoid levvying of any charge, the sms has been charged to you.

This is a scam in which all mobile operators are collectively enjoying crores of rupees from unsuspecting, poor poeple of India.

Imagine even if 30 crore (less than 1/4 of India's population) gets trapped by these things, and if even on an average Rs. 10/- is dbeited to them what is the kind of revenue these companies are generating including Airtel. (Rs. 300 crores maybe in one hour or even in a matter of minutes).

My mother lost 200 rupees to Flash sms service before we could figure out why her balance kept on reducing when she had not made a single call or sent an sms.

Is there any group out there taking such complaints to the competent courts. Had any PIL been filed.

Would appreciate if someone could get back.

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Please let us have your feedback for the same.

We are writing a separate email regarding the problems being faced by the prepaid number

Looking forward to your reply.