BT Phorm

[Mike Hughes]

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7641754.stm

Have you seen the screen picture in this? BT are trying to con people into enabling phorm by pushing it as a web protection technology called 'webwise'.

Hiding a controversial, snooping technology behind a 'safe' feature is such a con I can't believe BT are really doing this. Am I the only one who finds this un-acceptable?

Mike

[Duncan Rounding]

I'm amazed they're allowed to do it. I don't expect they will ever be able to make this obligatory as you must agree to the use of your data - hence the uproar with the 'secret' trial.

I'm not with BT but I wouldn't trust anyone who runs my cc details through a third party application. If you pay with visa maybe you'll get an advert for mastercard.

[pinbrook]

if you click on related items and go to the Phorm link it says they MUST make it obvious that you can opt out...

i wonder how many people give consent merely by clicking the pop up in order to get rid of it

[Mike Hughes]

i wonder how many people give consent merely by clicking the pop up in order to get rid of it

And how can they check it's the subscriber who's OK'd it anyway? My 8 year old son probably spends more time on the home PC than anyone else and how's he supposed to know what to click / not click?

It should be locked into the users control panel where they have to log in and deliberately tick a box to enable. I doubt if it will be though.

Probably time I left BT for my home service. They're overpriced anyway.

Mike

[TraceyHand]

Probably time I left BT for my home service. They're overpriced anyway.

Mike

I've been thinking this for years but, do you know why I stay?
Because we don't have any cable around here so, whoever I moved my broadband to, it would still be coming through my BT line.
As much as I hate paying BT their prices, I'm reluctant to add a 'middleman' so they can blame each other when things go wrong.

I can see it now. ISP blames BT, BT blames ISP...result? Deadlock!

It's petty, I know, but it's stopped me moving to some of the cheaper providers simply because, if something goes wrong, I KNOW who's to blame

[bamboo]

Tracey
In early 2007 I had the misfortune of my local BT exchange frying my ADSL connection. At the time I was with Firenet as my ISP and even worse they were dealing with an "ISP Provider" who was actually interfacing, their words not mine, with BT.

To cut a long story short I was without an ADSL connection for almost seven weeks. During week five I sent an e-mail to the head honcho at BT Wholesale who amazingly phoned me back the next day.
He was charming and explained how it wouldn't have made a scrap of difference to the time it was taking if I was with BT Broadband because the bizarre way BT is structured (company within company within divisions etc just like Royal Mail!) BT Broadband is one of BT Wholesales customers and they DO NOT get any preferential treatment. If they did they would be in breach of contract and subject to massive fines.
He did offer to raise the issue of the inordinate amount of the time the repair was taking internally with the mammoth company but he said by the time anything was done the problem would be resolved!

It was only after it was fixed when I bumped into my cousin did I get to the real reason it took so long. He is a BT "troubleshooter" at the sharp end of customers landline problems and he said that my local exchange ,which serves over 100,000 people, only has two engineers trained on ADSL!


So the best advice is go with the provider who gives you the best balance of monthly cost and robust service.
Six months ago I switched to Post Office for all of my phone/broadband/line rental and it has been superb for just £27 a month.
There are cheaper deals but cheaper rarely means better in the broadband world.

Derek

[pinbrook]

i have to admit i was very anti BT (basedon my experience in the very early days of BB when i had to use them cos the local cable provider didn.t do BB - they cut my service off on no less than 3 occiasins saying i hadn't paid the bill (I had paid the bill) So as soon as cable became available i jumped ship.

However recently i returned to BT (partner is ex BT so we get it free) so home is BT, office is cable. I have to say i'm impressed,the home hub has very good coverage, i sit in the garden with the eeepc and reply to emails. I especally like BT Fon - i can while away hours in an airport lounge again with my eeepc on BT Fon/BT Openzone (BT Total Broadband option 3)

they've convinced me....

[NormanRouxel]

with my eeepc on BT Fon/BT Openzone

Not since last week, perhaps. See BT withdraws Wi-Fi access to The Cloud.