Editor’s note: This post has been updated to include a response from Telenor Pakistan.
We all remember those instances when we get bothered by the marketing messages promoting their latest packages. It’s annoying, isn’t it? So recently a Telenor user on social media asserted that her phone network might be involved in potentially overcharging without disclosing in reference to the messages being sent to her.
Hija Kamran, a human rights activist from Karachi shared her experience regarding her phone network ‘Telenor’
She stated that she is a loyal user and has been using Telenor for 11 years.
Until now, I was waiting to confirm this before making any claims. And now when I have confirmed on my end, here's a short thread on how Telenor Pakistan is potentially scamming people.
Note: I've nothing against Telenor & I'm a loyal user!
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 8, 2019
She pointed out how Telenor, like other cell phone companies, might be overcharging without clearly disclosing and explained the details with the messages she received earlier
She claimed that she and one of her acquaintance discovered that their balance of PKR 0.75 got deducted on daily basis. She also said that it is a little amount but considering the fact that Telenor has a large number of subscribers, it can be deduced that this possible overcharging has the capability to generate a very huge amount of money.
A couple days ago, someone I know highlighted that every time they get this message, 0.75 PKR gets deducted from their credit. I first thought it isn't a big amount so it's ok, but later I realised that I'm not the only person using Telenor. There are millions of subscribers.
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 8, 2019
She even calculated the amount and approximated the total to be Rs. 32,250,000 /- everyday that the company is making off of innocent users with just one text message they send to your phone
Telenor has 43 million subscribers in Pakistan as per their website. If everyone is getting this text, (and if my math is correct) Telenor is making around 32,250,000 PKR in one day through this text only. I don't even know what that number is in words. pic.twitter.com/kU77QxSB6A
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 8, 2019
Hija re-checked the information she was providing and confirmed that despite the fact that she didn’t make any calls/texts, still the amount got deducted
Text came at 10:15 PM. I checked my balance at 10:17 PM, I was now at 465.53 PKR – 0.75 PKR less than what it originally was. pic.twitter.com/GPXfyC46mW
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 8, 2019
She claimed that this is the text she received on daily basis without subscribing to any package
She kept on updating about the situation and mentioned that she was approached by the members of Telenor team but they were unsure about the whole situation
Later, she received a call from the tech team which explained that data activity on her number is the cause of the messages. Though, Hijah clearly denied the usage of mobile data.
4:19PM: Got the call from tech team. They said my number is "attached" to 4G – couldn't quite understand this since 4G is enabled on my number but data is off on my device. He made me turn data on and off, and said he's tracking my data activity and will call again with details.
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 9, 2019
Telenor responded as well and claimed that the data activation without package charged her with the money and said that Telenor makes efforts to ensure transparency
Hi Hija, thankyou for the query. As discussed with you just now,the PKR0.75 is a charge of data activation in absence of an internet bundle triggering the said SMS to keep you informed of your usage & ensuring transparency. The charges are PKR0.75/64kbps. https://t.co/T3nZ4tWIg3
— Telenor Pakistan (@telenorpakistan) January 9, 2019
Hijah claimed that she was being wrongly charged…
That's not correct. I'm not using any data so data activation in itself is being wrongly charged. I spoke to someone named Noman in your team, he made me turn my data on and then off. I clarified to him multiple times that I'm constantly connected to my WiFi.
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 9, 2019
…and a lot of people in the thread have said that they also receive the same message without data usage
FYI, this is not "transparency", in fact quite the opposite. If you scroll through this thread, you'll see a lot of people have flagged that they get this SMS everyday even when they're not connected to data. Don't mislead people – please thoroughly investigate this. No hurry.
— Hija Kamran (@hijakamran) January 9, 2019
Telenor asserted that their analysis reflected that Hijah’s device has shown the traces of data usage without package and they further said that they would talk to her on the phone to resolve the issue
They also offered that a representative can help Hijah to get her device checked.
Our current offline coordination with you will further illustrate your detailed usage to satisfy your query. We at Telenor Pakistan care for our customers and are fully committed to providing services transparently by keeping the valued customer informed about their usage&charges
— Telenor Pakistan (@telenorpakistan) January 9, 2019
If the allegations by the user are true then it possibly is a huge issue which clandestinely operated to generate a huge sum of money. But final results cannot be deduced with this incomplete information so let’s just wait for the situation to get more clear.
Representatives from Telenor Pakistan also reached out to us to share what goes on at the company’s end when you end up being charged for the messages they send, here’s what they say:
“Telenor Pakistan is a customer oriented organization and is fully committed to providing services transparently by keeping its valued customers informed about their usage. We would like to highlight that in the absence of a data bundle users are charged PKR 0.75/64kbps and an SMS is sent to keep the users informed about this deduction.
In order to ensure there is no disruption in internet connectivity, some handset manufacturers provide the feature of automatic switching to mobile data in case WiFi connectivity is weak or unavailable.
For the benefit of our valued customers who intend to avoid automatic switching to data from WiFi, we would like to share a few simple steps for their convenience:
Disable the Auto Network Switch Setting on Android Devices
- From a Home screen navigate: Apps > Settings.
These instructions apply to Standard mode only.
- From the Wireless and networks section, tap Wi-Fi.
- Tap More.
- Tap Advanced.
- Tap Smart network switch to turn off
- If presented with the “Mobile data may be used to maintain a stable Internet connection. This may result in additional charges depending on your payment plan” prompt, tap OK to continue
Or
- From a home Screen Navigate Apps and Select Settings
- From the Connections Tab Select Wifi
- Select Advanced
- Turn off ‘Switch to mobile Data Option'”
So there you have it, while you are indeed charged the Rs. 0.75/- for your data usage which in turn generates a text message alerting you on your cellphone, this happens only in the absence of a data bundle, according to Telenor.
What do you think about the whole issue? Can you guys still sense a ‘potential’ scam? Or is it just an allegation without research and merit? Let us know in the comments below.
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