ICSTIS, the Independent Committee for the Supervision of
Standards of Telephone Information Services, uses the Emergency
Procedure to remove or bar access to a service that is in serious
breach of the Code of Practice.
According to ICSTIS, there has been a 500% increase in its use
of the Procedure in the first six weeks of 2005 and the regulator
will not hesitate to use the Procedure in future, where breaches
require urgent remedy.
"We will not allow services which appear willfully misleading
and deceptive or which break
UK
laws," said ICSTIS
yesterday.
The regulator highlighted cases involving automated dialling
equipment, used for misleading competition-type services, mobile
content subscription services targeting children or that are
clearly designed to mislead, and any internet dialler services set
up without permission or operating contrary to permission
certificates issued by ICSTIS.
The Emergency Procedure will be used in all such cases, said
ICSTIS.
ICSTIS also expressed concern about cases where there is
evidence of serious breach and a real risk that revenues will be
paid out before an investigation into the breach can be
completed.
"In these cases," said ICSTIS, "it may be right to freeze
out-payments pending adjudication and then to fast-track
investigations."
Elsewhere,
BT
announced its latest plans for
tackling rogue diallers, a type of premium rate scam.
The scam uses software to install a default dial-up number onto
an unwitting person's computer to call a premium rate number,
resulting in an unexpectedly expensive call every time the computer
connects to the internet.
BT has developed a free software download, known as
BT
Modem Protection, which will stop a customer's
computer dialling higher-cost premium rate or international
numbers, even if dialler software is present.
Customers will be warned if their modem begins to dial any
number other than a list of 'approved numbers', such as the
national call and freephone numbers used by ISPs, said
BT
.
The other measure is a new early warning alert for customers
affected by diallers. If a customer's bill rises dramatically above
its usual pattern in a day or a call is made to a destination
suspected of operating unregistered diallers, they will receive a
warning alert from
BT
.
A text message will immediately be sent to the customer's
landline, alerting them to the sharp increase in their bill.
Customers who do not have a text-enabled handset at home will
receive it as a voice message.
The two new initiatives, which have been successfully trialled
in Northern Ireland, are likely to be available to all
BT
customers by May.
