Virus Drains Data Bundle R10 000 later.

[Jonny Two Shoes]

Firstly I agree in asking WTF!!! Vodacom are doing charging out-of-bundle rates so high that it could cost you your dam life.

I also think that the company (Vodacom) providing a service should not allow such a thing to happen, and in all honesty if they have any real interest in keeping customers loyal and applying some basic ethics they should try and cover for their customer. At least don't tell them "stuff you, your virus, pay up and go away!!".

Sure users should be more responsible, but they are definately not keeping that customer for very much longer. Why should they care anyway??!

Am I wrong in thinking this??

 

[xrapidx]

I agree with you about the alerting thing, BUT, he put his contract sim card into the data card, how were they suppossed to get hold of him, if they tried?!

.. I wouldnt pay if they couldnt tell me what I'm paying for... they must keep some kind of auditable records.. If they can tell him where the data went, ports, location, etc., he'd be able to tell if it was a virus or not.

 

[Iam3G]

Well, I feel the responsibiliy falls on the client/user... maybe in the states you sue your isp..

I concur. It is the responsibilty of the client/user. I myself was in situation like this not too long ago, and shot my mom's bill sky high(about 5k+). At the time i didnt anything about "Prorata Invoices". So i surfed like a mad man, and nothing showed up on the bill. But it was my err becoz i shouldve used my instead of thinking that the internet was free(me thinking somehow Vodacom f@cked up somehwere).

So i think your friend bruce000 should take responsibilty for what happened, wether it was unconsious or consious. He signed the contract to pay Vodacom for their service, not for Vodacom to monitor what goes on on his PC.

 

[xrapidx]

Ignorance isn't an excuse

 

[JK8]

They could lock it at 5k but what about the users that dont mind their bill and also need acess regardless of the bundle usage.

Imagine how pissed youd be if the SP had to cap your line because you reached 5k and now you need ID and other docs to uncap the line?

Its up to the user to be responsible with the product.

 

[xrapidx]

... a subscription based monitoring system would be the way to go though... email or sms driven... user sets an amount, something like every 1GB or R1,000 he gets an email or sms notification... simple, clean, full on user responsibilty if he ignores it.

 

[bekdik]

So having a cap isn't necessarily a bad thing?

 

[kaspaas]

With IT-management part of my duties, this is an issue that worries me much.

It would be nice to have an (default) option where VC suspends data access when a data bundle is "empty" and require an SMS to reactivate.

It does give some kind of protection against run-away data consumption on post-paid accounts.

But then I agree: Only idiots stay connected when not actively using their connections, and most probably the poor sod will need to request VC for mercy and pay the bill in installments.

 

[diabolus]

Who leaves a laptop running for 3 days anyway?

Heh, more like who actually gets a continuous,unbroken 3G connection on their laptop for 3 days ! . I get a disconnect at least once in a 5 hour period >minimum<.

But on a more serious note. If you have a contract, you have an account.

An Account means it can be monitored.

On ABSA i also i have an account, i can monitor it as follows:

a] Send SMS for every "event" on my account , be it change of personal details or a query.

b] Send SMS on USER_DEFINED amounts. For example everytime i make a purchase > R400 i get an SMS . Everytime i RECEIVE an amount > R1000 i get an SMS.

I change that myself, now a cellphone account = running account. So you would want notification when the -balance- reach x amount. I see no reason
why vodacom can't do this. Vodacom do not have to "DO" something, a simple notification/alert system is already enough to give the user the opportunity to act.


For example, i'd set up an alert when my account reach R500 [still safe] , when it hits R1000 [red alert!] and then an alert every R100 above R1000.

ABSA makes you pay for the amount of SMSs, i'm fine with that knowing i'm not going to get shock when viewing my balance.

 

[Bruce000]

I concur. It is the responsibilty of the client/user. I myself was in situation like this not too long ago, and shot my mom's bill sky high(about 5k+). At the time i didnt anything about "Prorata Invoices". So i surfed like a mad man, and nothing showed up on the bill. But it was my err becoz i shouldve used my instead of thinking that the internet was free(me thinking somehow Vodacom f@cked up somehwere).

So i think your friend bruce000 should take responsibilty for what happened, wether it was unconsious or consious. He signed the contract to pay Vodacom for their service, not for Vodacom to monitor what goes on on his PC.

I agree with you he should take responsibility. He is a wealthy businessman and quite a big client with Vodacom, so prolly wont have to pay as much as us plebs. Maybe the the fact that he had a weekend contract sim in is part of the problem. Don't know!!! This is why i posed the question in the first place. Just very scary that this can happen and tere is no preventative measures supplied by the Service Provider. SERVICE being the operative word. I'm not trying to put the blame on Vodacom, I just feel they need to educate their customers. The same way the banks educate us against ATM and Internet fraud.
Just a thought.

 

[The_Unbeliever]

This thread is making me worried. Using a Linksys router with a 5GB account, what steps can I take to prevent this happening to me. All LAN PC's use NOD32 updated via a local mirror, and all have atleast Win XP firewall activated. Unfortunately, I can't baby-sit all the users, and some of them are prone to doing silly things online.

I did speak to the VC helpdesk a while ago about setting a limit on our account, so that instead of going into OOBR's, the account would be cut-off. The consultant I spoke to said that it is very difficult, and a bit hit-and-miss. She suggested that I check balances frequently. Surely there must be something that works better.

Install a firewall with content filtering, such as Smoothwall and Dansguardian. You'll also be able to see how much bandwidth you've used up so far. (Free, open-source Linux firewall).

And, personally, I think the consultant is waffling. They must be able to check data limits in order to charge you for usage?

 

[The_Unbeliever]

I think this is already the case. I could be wrong. I don’t think this account was New though.


CodeMaster what about setting up Smoothwall as additional security on your connection(s). I am setting up one myself now on my to-be ADSL connection.

Welcome to the Revolution!

Which version are you looking at? Express 2.0, or the new Degu 3?

 

[Mier]

Just checked V4ME. Last month I forfeited 702740.48 KB on my 1GIG bundle.

Maybe Vodacom can donate this stolen data to your friend.

 

[kronoSX]

Its Sad That He Is Going To Pay Vc. Invest In Zonealarm

 

[Bruce000]

Just checked V4ME. Last month I forfeited 702740.48 KB on my 1GIG bundle.

Maybe Vodacom can donate this stolen data to your friend.

Thanks 4 that!!!!!

 

[Bruce000]

Its Sad That He Is Going To Pay Vc. Invest In Zonealarm

 

[xrapidx]

Just checked V4ME. Last month I forfeited 702740.48 KB on my 1GIG bundle.

Maybe Vodacom can donate this stolen data to your friend.

WTF... how could you let that happen? I call for a hanging.

We have the two extreams on one thread... one who used to much... and the other who wasted to much

 

[babrevian]

I find it hard to believe you can rack up R10000 in 3 days. Is it really possible?

 

[Csnoopy]

[searchforum]NetLimiter[/searchforum] is very useful when trying to diagnose & find a bandwidth-hungry malware infection and prevent it from using bandwidth.

What I have done to prevent these goggos or whoever or whatever to stop stealing my bandwidth was to run Netmeter & Netlimeter monitor. These programs are both free. If I see traffic on Netmeter or spikes and I am not browsing or getting emails I use Netlimeter monitor to see which task is the culprit. I also use Bitdefender V10 Plus which has a firewall. I clear all the rules and let the system run. If it is an unknow task the firewall will ask for approval to allow the task to send data/info then immediately you can see what it is.

I think what happened to him, he was hacked from outside because he left his system on with no protection. A hacker found a open port and the rest is history. If you have a PC/Notebook and no Internet security of sorts & regulary updated as IAM3G says you have BIG trouble coming.

You can not leave the door to your house open with NO security walk away for 3 days and expect nothing to disappear from your house. If you know about the risk and have been told you have trouble.

He should have had some form of warning. sms to his modem, that he has reached OOB limit but seeing that he left the modem for 3 days he would not have seen it anyway. That is why I said and I remember that @v3g had also made some suggestion that a sms is sent to an alternate number to prevent these disasterous situations. So yes in a way the ISP should be partly responsible. So hey these things like data processing, electrons, virusses that go up and down wires or radio waves what you can't see, they hurt you the most. Therefore the customer should be warned and told of the risks when selling these products and given the option to prevent the nasty things that happen. Etc. Etc. Etc. Etc. Etc.

 

[Csnoopy]

I concur. It is the responsibilty of the client/user. I myself was in situation like this not too long ago, and shot my mom's bill sky high(about 5k+). At the time i didnt anything about "Prorata Invoices". So i surfed like a mad man, and nothing showed up on the bill. But it was my err becoz i shouldve used my instead of thinking that the internet was free(me thinking somehow Vodacom f@cked up somehwere).

So i think your friend bruce000 should take responsibilty for what happened, wether it was unconsious or consious. He signed the contract to pay Vodacom for their service, not for Vodacom to monitor what goes on on his PC.

Did you tell him about the risks if he goes OOB and what can make him go oob without him knowing ??. In your case you paid up because you knew what you were doing was wrong.

Ignorance isn't an excuse

You obviously know it all. Have never made a booboo.

I agree with you he should take responsibility. He is a wealthy businessman and quite a big client with Vodacom, so prolly wont have to pay as much as us plebs. Maybe the the fact that he had a weekend contract sim in is part of the problem. Don't know!!! This is why i posed the question in the first place. Just very scary that this can happen and tere is no preventative measures supplied by the Service Provider. SERVICE being the operative word. I'm not trying to put the blame on Vodacom, I just feel they need to educate their customers. The same way the banks educate us against ATM and Internet fraud.
Just a thought.

No not a thought it is a fact. You are right.

I agree with Bruce000. Was he warned upfront of the risks. @IAM3G you have also been working on these products did you know about the risks ???. I have been in the Computer industry for quite a while and I also made a mistake because I did not know about the risks. But believe me I will not make the same one again. But the ISP's are the experts like the banks they should warn the customers/users about the risks. He should have been stopped at R200 not at R10,000. Why are there laws and road side warnings etc. because we are all human and we don't think.