Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Subscription Scams
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Subscription Scams
From pills that resolve chronic pain issues overnight to diet supplements which promise to help shed pounds in days, the internet is awash with adverts making bold claims. Some come with a celebrity endorsement, where household names appear to give their personal stamp of approval to a product. But many of these are scams, with customers tricked into parting with more money than they realise ever intended.
File on 4 investigates the growth of online subscription scams, where customers are unwittingly signed up to schemes which hit them with hidden charges, unexpected monthly fees and products which are made deliberately difficult to cancel. We hear from victims with chronic illnesses desperately searching for a solution to their ailments, who are instead left out of pocket and we speak to the celebrities furious their names are being used to endorse such products. The programme goes in search of those running these schemes online and exposes the tools and tricks designed to scam unwitting customers and sheds light on the creation of a global multi-million pound industry.
Reporter: Athar Ahmad
Producer: Anna Meisel
Editor: Carl Johnston
View all episodes
By BBC Radio 4
4.3
3232 ratings
From pills that resolve chronic pain issues overnight to diet supplements which promise to help shed pounds in days, the internet is awash with adverts making bold claims. Some come with a celebrity endorsement, where household names appear to give their personal stamp of approval to a product. But many of these are scams, with customers tricked into parting with more money than they realise ever intended.
File on 4 investigates the growth of online subscription scams, where customers are unwittingly signed up to schemes which hit them with hidden charges, unexpected monthly fees and products which are made deliberately difficult to cancel. We hear from victims with chronic illnesses desperately searching for a solution to their ailments, who are instead left out of pocket and we speak to the celebrities furious their names are being used to endorse such products. The programme goes in search of those running these schemes online and exposes the tools and tricks designed to scam unwitting customers and sheds light on the creation of a global multi-million pound industry.
Reporter: Athar Ahmad
Producer: Anna Meisel
Editor: Carl Johnston
More shows like File on 4 Investigates
View all
Global News Podcast
7,747 Listeners
From Our Own Correspondent
377 Listeners
More or Less
889 Listeners
Newshour
1,065 Listeners
Money Box
37 Listeners
In Our Time
5,471 Listeners
The Documentary Podcast
1,821 Listeners
6 Minute English
1,789 Listeners
Learning English Conversations
1,047 Listeners
Profile
108 Listeners
F1: Chequered Flag
719 Listeners
Crossing Continents
80 Listeners
Moral Maze
68 Listeners
The Briefing Room
74 Listeners
Newscast
646 Listeners
You're Dead to Me
3,221 Listeners
The Slow Newscast
169 Listeners
Americast
743 Listeners
The Story
259 Listeners
Cyber Hack
1,606 Listeners
Radical with Amol Rajan
49 Listeners
The History Podcast
61 Listeners
Shadow World
34 Listeners
Marianna in Conspiracyland
50 Listeners
The Crime Agents
34 Listeners