Possible SPAM SMS?

[serfty]

Today I received an SMS from "IHG" (Sic¹):

[TABLE="class: outer_border, width: 178"]
[TR]
[TD]<FreeMsg>PriorityClubRewards: Win up to 12 Free Nights. Send MB2 [email addr] by 4Aug to 199[redacted] to register. Stop? SMS STOP to 199[redacted]. IHG Help? 1800[redacted][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]


Plugging the SMS phone number into 19 Service Finder returns the following:

[TABLE="class: outer_border, width: 518"]
[TR]
[TD]19 Service Finder - Results

Premium Number:
199[redacted]

Service Provider:
I-Pop Networks

Campaign name:
I-Pop Networks

Campaign type:
Other

Campaign start Date:
21/09/2009

Campaign end Date:
31/12/2050

Campaign Description:
purchase mobile games (one-off)

You pay for sending a TXT message to this service:
$0.25

You pay for receiving a TXT message from this service(*):
$6.60

Note 1
(*)some TXT messages sent to users may be exempt from charging. Please pay attention to details in the message

Cust Care Phone No:
1800 [redacted][/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]


Of course I am not going to reply.

¹ That's who it's showing as "from", normally I get a 'phone number or, if the number is in my phonebook, the name of an entry in which the number appears.

 

[medhead]

Should you report this to the telecommunications authority. There seems to be a disconnect between IHG and the information related to the phone number. Possible fraud?

 

[awilcockson]

This is why I am so glad that Virgin finally introduced an option to block premium rate SMS. I spent months getting them to refund over $100 in charges from one of these mobs that kept sending $5 a pop messages even after we sent them the stop message (and having never requested their services in the first place).