dialup hijack

[ajmmac]

in the case of a dial up connection being hijacked by the installation of a dialler by some hacker and a large bill having been run up what can be done to deal with the phone co re the bill--seems there is no way to prove the bill was run up by someone else and the phone co is insisting on payment--anybody gone thru this already?--what advice can anyone offer--is there a body that can mediate on this--all help gratefully received

[Kerplunk]

Someone from work went through the same thing and they had to pay up (�800 in a quarter). Legally you are responsible for the calls made, it is not the fault of the phone company.

[ajmmac]

thanks kerplunk--i do accept the point of being legally responsible--i was hoping since this must be so common that some sort of process may have been set up to help with such situations--i know it is not the fault of the phone co and that ultimately the bill has to be paid--cheers

[BillyNoMates]

I'm afraid the process is simply to have adequate protection on your PC(s).

Any reasonable telephone company should be sympathetic to a degree and permit you pay bit by bit.

[BillyNoMates]

Plus, one of the more common ways of getting caught by this is after changover from dial-up Internet access to broadband.

Modem is left connected, broadband means PC is likely to be online more often and for longer periods. So the risk of infection is greater.

So if you switch from dial-up to braodabnd, make sure you disconnect your old modem cable !