<<< NEWS FROM THE LAB - Friday, October 16, 2009 >>> ARCHIVES | SEARCH What's w03.v762.net? Posted by Sean @ 13:29 GMT I want to confess a bad habit of mine. I don't always review my phone bill.



As I have an F-Secure provided phone, and because my personal calls are usually well within budget, I often don't review my billing statement. (I really should call my mother more often…)



I think I'll start reviewing it regularly from now on.



Last Saturday, my wife received the following to her (also company provided) phone's Messaging Inbox:







It claimed to be a "Service message" and contained a link to a "video message".







This is what the link renders via Firefox on Windows:







And this is what "w03.v762.net" displays from a Nokia phone's browser:







Sorry, but you need my number? Not very useful, eh? What's this all about?



It's about the "Mobile Tube spam" that Jarno posted about ten days ago. At that point, it looked as if these links were billing those that clicked the link for a premium rate service. A few days later, the situation appeared to change and the links no longer generate a billing charge.



In any case, my wife didn't click on the message, asking me to review it instead, and I deleted it from her phone.



And now I can't help but wonder, how many people might have accidentally clicked on these links ten days ago and simply dismissed the result? And how many of those people share my bad habit, and don't bother to review their bill?



Reviewing one's bill is always good practice, it's one of the most effective ways of preventing fraud.



You should review your phone bill as closely as you do your credit card statement.



And with these "Service message" links in circulation, perhaps it's time for companies to remind their employees of this best practice.



Signing off,

Sean









