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Aussie Regulator Comes Down On SMS Spam
An anonymous reader writes "The Australian Communications and Media Authority has commenced legal proceedings in the Federal Court against several local and international companies over allegedly unsolicited SMS spam. It's the first time the regulator has used its powers under the Spam Act to pursue an alleged SMS spammer through the Courts. Other companies have been fined or committed to an 'enforceable undertaking' to avoid this type of action (although these are not without issue). Another firm accused of SMS spam accused the regulator of being overzealous after it received a formal warning. The regulator appears to have instituted a crackdown on the premium mobile content industry in recent months, culminating in this latest action."
Find them guilty and kill them with fire.
No one expects the Spammer Inquisition!
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If I didn't have an unlimited text plan
Unlimited text plans usually aren't. My stepdaughter's boyfriend has 'unlimited text' through Verizon, and he ended up paying per message one month. Unlimited usually means 1,000 text messages or so a month.
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First, I recommend everyone get a plan with free SMS.
Still, I agree with the parent.
Since killing them with fire is not enough of a punishment for these spammers, according to mark72005, I propose we find some other cruel way to kill these spammers for their horrible act of racking up unwanted charges for text messages.
We could nail their fingers to a wall for one month per SMS they sent out? So for every 1mil messages... that's a finger, and with the time added, considering most of these guys spammed well over 9000 people... they are really gonna be in for a world of hurt, until they eventually die, hanging from their fingers.
AND THEN we burn them.
The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
It doesn't cost you money to answer (and hang up on) a telemarketer. And there's a no-call list in most states that works pretty well.
Well, kind of. I value my time at home and when I'm doing something that I don't enjoy, I expect to be compensated (pay check, home improvement, if-I-don't-clean-this-shit-up-my-wife-will-leave-me, etc.) Just because I don't see a new number on my phone bill doesn't mean I'm not sacrificing something of value.
Since the don't-call-list, I've received only a handful of telemarketing calls but still get political, charity, and survey calls. My typical response is to ask the caller whether they're volunteering their time to call me. If they are, I'll give them a couple of minutes to make their pitch (if it's a political call and the person is motivated and well-informed, I may talk for a while if I have nothing going on - charities I prefer to research myself rather than take the word of a random caller). If they're being paid (typically the case for surveys and mixed results for charity/political), I ask why they expect me to spend time on the call for free when they won't. Ends the call pretty effectively.
He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
First, I recommend everyone get a plan with free SMS.
No. No way.
I have a land-line with a bottom-basement plan that suits my needs just fine (with the occasional exception of missing call-waiting when trying to get through to my wife). We have a cell phone that we pay $15/month for (150 minutes - WAY more than we need). When we accept a text, it costs us $.05 (and usually isn't worth that). If I could find a cheaper plan, I'd take it - But no way am I signing up for a more expensive plan just so that I don't have to pay for people to send me crap I don't want without incurring additional expense.
Also, I'm on board with the fire thing, but nailing fingers is more time than I'm willing to dedicate to torture. Let's just stick to killing them with fire - Simple, cheap, clean, and effective.
He's getting rather old, but he's a good mouse.
that itself is only a better suggestion if you know where I can get an unlimited SMS plan that doesn't cost more. (or at least an unlimited received SMS plan).
If I'm paying more, it is not leaving the cost to the provider. I'm picking up the tab for the cost, and providing the provider with a profit margin that they have incentive to maximize without passing me any of the benefit.
The providers absolutely love your suggestion. An extra $5 per month on every contract they have would do wonders for their bottom line. I'd rather do something else with that $60/year, thanks. No good.
Do unsolicited gifts laws apply in the us? about being forced to pay for in coming texts? Has any one taking that to court?
This is like a COD that they say it hear YOU PAY NOW! You don't want it WE SHIPPED to you so YOU PAY.
If UPS, FEDEX, or the USPS tried the same thing the courts likely kill that off fast and what if your only choice was pay for all in coming and what you send even if you send very little or no shipping at all and the only way is to pay for a package deal that costs much more then you need to pay and comes with way more then you use per month.
Let's just stick to killing them with fire - Simple, cheap, clean, and effective
I prefer lobbing nukes from orbit. The fireworks are more impressive, and there's a greater chance of success.
The meek may inherit the earth, but the strong shall take the stars.
For the information of Merkins out there: here in Australia, we don't pay anything to receive calls or SMSs. This only happens when we're roaming internationally, where the cost of calls can be nearly doubled as the telco slugs both caller and callee. Vodafone is a particular case in point.
"stop" may block them, but texting "stop. hammer time" actually destroys their soul in the process.
Reviewing just the first hour of video games.