Consumers beware! Scammers are victimizing people with internet subscription fraud

Nihat Altay, Vice President of the Consumer Union Federation, stated that consumers are frequently being harassed regarding internet subscription processes and could be victimized, warning them not to take any action without verifying with the companies from which they receive service.

Altay, who also serves as the President of the Consumer Rights Search Association, noted that they are working to resolve issues faced by consumers and providing consultancy services.

Altay stated the following:

Consumers are being harassed by calls from numbers such as 0212, 0312, 0800, and 0850, with claims that their subscription will be terminated, or by being offered new subscriptions or more advantageous campaigns and opportunities. We are receiving dozens of complaints about this," said Altay, adding that consumers are asking, "Are we obligated to endure these calls?" or "Do we have to block these callers every single time?"

Altay further added, "However, because the consumers they convince start a new subscription and their previous subscription contract is terminated, they end up paying an additional cancellation fee since the commitment period has not yet expired, thus becoming victims. The second grievance is that upon switching to the new subscription, a much higher amount than what was stated to the consumer is reflected on the bill."

Emphasizing that the identities of the companies or individuals calling from such numbers must be identified and measures taken, Altay said that consumers should not take any action without verifying with the companies they receive service from, otherwise they may be forced to pay cancellation fees.

Altay expressed that a solution must be found to block unwanted phone calls and that citizens are waiting for a resolution on this matter. Citizen Burak Can Erzenoğlu stated that he is frequently called from 0800 and 0850 numbers and that he blocks these numbers, noting that elderly citizens in particular are more easily deceived and victimized by such calls. He emphasized that citizens should be careful about this and consult with the customer representatives of the services they use before taking any action.

Sadrettin Bayram also said that he is frequently called with home internet offers and that he blocks these calls, adding that citizens should not believe such calls.