A premium rate dialler is a small program that is used to establish a connection to the Internet or an online service by getting a dial-up modem to connect via a premium rate telephone number. This software can cause your computer to dial a premium rate number to connect costing you as much as £1.50 per minute.
Some diallers are legitimate, giving the user access to chargeable content that would otherwise be difficult to bill the user for. Legitimate diallers will inform the user that they are going to be installed, give details as to what the call charges will be and will not set themselves to be the default connection for the system.
Other kinds of dialler may not give any indication of the call charges, may download even if the user cancels the download, may install as the default connection, may make a connection without any intervention by the user and may not be easy to uninstall.
Broadband users are not immune to the effects of a premium rate dialler if they have left their old dial-up modem connected to the phone line. It is therefore worth using security software that will inform you of unauthorised changes to your computer.
Check your bill regularly to see if you have been a victim. Check for 090 numbers and international numbers. Please note, Virgin Media dial-up Internet connections use the following phone numbers: 0800 519 0100 (for Virgin Media Unlimited Dial-up) and 0845 455 0520 (for Virgin Media pay as you go dial-up).
We suggest that customers read section 15 of the Virgin Media User Policy to see how premium rate diallers may affect them.
Follow normal online safety tips by ensuring you have anti-virus software, anti-spyware software and a firewall installed on your computer.
Unplug the phone line from the back of your computer. If you are a broadband user you don?t need this, except for when you have connection problems.
Check your dialler settings to make sure there are no unrecognised dial-up configurations. These can be found by going into Internet Options on your Control Panel, and clicking on the "Connections" tab, or by searching for "Dial-up". Please note, Virgin Media dial-up Internet connections use the following phone numbers: 0800 519 0100 (for Virgin Media Unlimited Dial-up) and 0845 455 0520 (for Virgin Media pay as you go Dial-up).
Free software is available which can clean your PC. Webroot Spy Sweeper will advise you of any dialler software that is installed on your computer. Installing and configuring a firewall will protect your computer from future unauthorised downloads, and give you an opportunity to block any attempted downloads from unrecognised sources.
Call barring can be activated to block diallers connecting to the internet using premium rate and international numbers.
Where can you get more information?
The Independent Committee for the Supervision of Standards of Telephone Information Services - ICSTIS
