My parents PC has it.

[roystrange]

My Parents PC is infected with this and no-one in the house has any idea where it come from,it just appeared, my dad has contacted them via phone but to no avail, i have tried and all i got was well until the £29.99 has been paid we will not send you the code to uninstall the software, i have maually deleted it  but it just regenerates it when you restart the PC, AVG does not detect it, no spyware program detects it, i spoke to a computer tech mate's wife and she says it sounds like a worm,she is gonna get my mate to ring me to clarify, so does the software have an encrypted worm in the program.

My dad says he is not gonna pay it as he has no recolection of it, its possible that my brother knowlingly or not knowingly installed it, but even though he is 21 he has aspergers in an advanced stage so he may not have known what he was doing

[ForumFriend]

You comment about your brother raises a point that I've made in the past to the OFT and elsewhere, namely that this type of 'billing method' is (even assuming there is nothing more underhand going on) liable to be misunderstood and misused by people with learning disabilities and the like - not to mention the computer newbie!

Along with the other things that you have to think about on this, could I ask you/your parents to contact Trading Standards and the Office of Fair Trading about this matter?  I have a direct contact with the person at Trading Standards who is dealing with this, and will be delighted to forward your case to him for his comments, which I can then pass back to you.

You can use the email envelope under my icon to email direct to me.  Everything you tell me will be in the strictest confidence, and I can assure you that it will make it easy for you to have a hotline to the OFT.

We, on this forum, will be very happy to help you in any other way that we can.  Please do not despair.

[roystrange]

Well i am sure i have got it off the pc now, but i still think this is all abit ludicruss.

they should change the way they operate

Roy

[roystrange]

Hopefully i have removed all traces of it on their PC, i took it back down to their house today and connected it to the net and in the few hours i was down there the bill did not reappear.

[RobertsMrtn]

I had the same software installed on my PC. I had no idea where it came from. I think that it probably hijacked on the back of something else I downloaded. The software was saying that I owed £29.99.

I rang the telephone number given and the woman on the 'phone did not have the name of the person who downloaded or registered the software. How many online registration programs do not ask for the name of the individual registering?

I did give the woman my name and address because I thought at the time that the software may have been installed by someone else in the house. She said that she would send a form for me to post back giving evidence of the children in my household. I ignored the letter after reading similar stories on the web.

The latest is that I have received a letter from Platte Media giving me 7 day to pay the £29.99 or face legal action. I have returned the letter to Platte Media without payment and with a letter reminding them that the maximum penalty for fraud is 10 years imprisonment. I would urge anyone in the same situation not to pay the £29.99. This look very much like a scam in my opinion.   

[algo]

The bill has appeared on my computer  --  and seems to be taking longer and longer to go. £49!

I've no recollection of joining  --  or thinking about it.

I've tried Spybot, which got rid of several related entries, but has not stopped the Bill appearing.

I will report it to OFT.

Any ideas of how to get rid of the bill and the shortcut that appears on my desktop?

[Kimmie]

Hi, hoping someone can help/advise here.

I recently unwittingly 'signed up' for a subscription to Platte Media, I think it must have been through a link on You Tube. I kept getting an invoice for £49.99 and my initial thoughts were to just ignore it but like others, I have found it is impossible to get rid of. When I read about it more it mentioned things like £500 fines etc and this really scared me, so this morning I phoned up and paid using my credit card. I have since found this forum and read that others have ignored the demand for payment and no action has been taken, so have I been a complete idiot by paying? Am I able to cancel the transaction through my credit card company? I'm also worrird because I gave my address as well 

Thanks.

[ForumFriend]

I think only your credit card company can answer the main point of your question, so you'd need to speak to them about the possibility of cancelling payment.  Nobody would think you an idiot - anything like this can seem very scary and we know of others who have done the same as you.

If you're worried about having given out your address, I'd suggest, for peace of mind, that you ask them to confirm in writing that they have received payment from you and that you owe them nothing more.

Do keep us updated of any developments, and you can always ask for help here.

[Kimmie]

Thanks, ForumFriend, for your kind words and reassurance. I have been in touch with my credit card company and they said as the transaction only took place this am, it is too soon to be able to do anything but have given me a number to ring in a few days time. They were unable to say at this stage where I stand. When I made my payment to Platte Media this morning I was told I would receive an e-receipt for my payment plus an email confirming cancellation of my subscription but I have yet to receive either of these emails.

[harri]

Hi can i ask the original bill popped up on 9/11/08 and i got rid of it straight away without contacting them at all. Nothing has happened since but can i ask has anyone had correspondance from them without contacting them as i did? I'm hoping it has all gone away but it is still on my mind. Thanks for this forum it is a great help x

[Kimmie]

Hi Harri, you're lucky that you were able to get rid of the bill and not seen it since, mine kept coming back regardless. I paid it with my credit card Mon am but that was before I found this enlightening forum. I now realise I probably needn't have paid it and I am waiting to see if I can cancel the transaction but even if I do, it will still play on my mind that they have the ability to infect my PC.