I have set up 2 mobile phone plans with Vodafone on plan and has been going quiet well for over a year. MObile phone was setup using direct debit and going well for over a year. Untill it reached Oct 2011 my monthly bill started to day im outstanding payment, I call vodafone up and they said I have not paid but will be picked up next month. Few months have gone by March 2012 now I have an outstatnding bill to vodafone for over $300. I went to my online bank to check if money was taken out and surely it has been without a hitch for each month. So not only I have paid they are saying I am also outstanding at the same time? I finally got ahold of someone Australia the ecare correspondance team and for them to START investigating they request my whole bank statement.

Now due to privacy issues I went to my online bank and only gave them cut and paste days and dates and bank tracking number and withdrawal amount of the vodafone payment. She said that was not enough and still require my whole bank statement for them to start investigating. I am not after a home loan and I feel violated that they have to have my whole bankstatement they can see my savings, spending habits, income, payments and transaction that is NOT related to them. This has kept me up for few months straight now concerning me and that this level of detail was not acceptable. I have since then lodged a formal complaint to the Australian privacy comissioner. After they have checked my bankstatement the vodafone correspondence team said we have waived the overdue payments without giving a reason why it happened.

I feel violated and now insecure and have no confidence in Vodafones billing system.

I'd ask Vodafone for my account to be investigated especially with the data usage past 11 Feb 2011 to 20th Feb 2011 where most of the charges are coming from. My mobile number is <<PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED>>.

I know my data usage and never exceed my data usage and I've been with Vodafone for years. I called Vodafone on 1555 and asked for my data usage to be investigated but then being told that it is not possible because of privacy issue.

I've been billed for my excess data with amount of 290$ and at the same time there is no notification on the mobile that I've exceeded my data usage in the first place otherwise I will call Vodafone straight away to verify the usage, and I always been told that your system is always right and this data usage is my personal problem and again I'm not able to know what the data usage is for :( , feeling helpless at this stage

I'm about to give this company away. They used to be a good company once upon a time and were a great alternative to the other telcos.

First of all there were problems with the reception - my bill has doubled when I had to resend test messages. Now there is supposed reception when there is none - send a text message for it to freeze and not send when there is apparently full barred up reception on my phone. Now they tell me I need to ring them to pay my bill. Funny how they can find me with a bill but I can't pay it. This is the second month.

I've lost patience finally as I have to use work time tomorrow to ring them. I don't have time to sit on the phone waiting for them to sort out my account. I've been a customer for a long time.
Pity they didn't learn from their recent mistakes with the privacy issues and listen to their customers as well.
Think I will check out someone else. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

I recently damaged my iPhone so I needed to do an insurance claim. The insurance claim was fine and I got my phone within a week (very happy about this). When I picked up my phone from the store I asked them when my contract was up and they said in 3 months and that I could upgrade for free. I was a tad annoyed about this as the insurance claim cost me $250 and I would have upgraded and avoided that cost. Anyway I thought I would give the new phone that I got from insurance to my sister as she was in need of a phone and I upgraded my phone over the phone. AS I was giving the insurance phone to my sister I needed something to tide me over until I get my phone from upgrades in the next 2 weeks. I went into the store in Rundle Mall in Adelaide to grab a cheapie phone. I was served by a young girl and she ran out the back and got me the $20 cheapie phone that I asked for and when she came back she asked for my drivers licence. I asked what she needed it for and she said that she needed to activate the pre-paid sim card that came with the phone. I looked at the board that the phone was on and said that there were other phones that said that tehy came in packs but this one didn't and there was no disclaimer saying that I needed to activate a free sim card that came with the phone let alone hand over my drivers licence to activate it. I said that I had no need for the sim card and seeing as it didn't state that I had to take it I didn't want it. She started talking about how it was by law that they had to activate a sim card with every pre paid phone sold and so on and so forth. I said I would like the literature that states that I need to activate a pre paid number when I just want to buy a pre paid phone. She printed out a form (the one I had to sign) and said that it stated it on there. I informed her that the form talked about activating a pre-paid mobile number, not purchasing a pre paid phone. A young man came to help serve and he got agitated when I pointed out that the form had nothing to do with purchasing a pre paid mobile phone and I would like the literature which said I had to activate a sim card when purchasing a pre paid mobile phone. He said he could not find it and I asked politely if he could dig it up and I would be back in the store in an hour once I had finished work. His response absolutely horrified me. His exact word were, "I would rather be serving customers that have to do this." Now I have 3 post paid accounts with vodafone. One for me, one for my mother and one for my father as they are a bit older and it is getting a bit much for them to deal with bills so I consider myself a customer of vodafone no matter how small my issue is. Before I lost my temper I politely told him that if he could be so kind as to try and find the paperwork regarding activating a pre paid sim card before I returned I would be more than happy to take it.

I returned to the store an hour later as I said that I would. The girls who served me the first time was there and she asked me to wait. She then went to the front of the store, spoke to another girl and the second girl served me. The second girl said that I could have the phone with no sim card but there would be no warranty on the phone. I found that strange and said so. She then changed her story a little and said it was because there was no way of tracking the phone if they sold it to me without a phone number that they activated. I informed her the the first girl told me that I could throw away the activated sim card if I didn't need it and if this was the case if I came back needing the phone repaired without that phone number how would they find it? She then said it would be because they would find me by name.

Now I am not up-to-date with all technology but I do know this from buying other phones outright (without a damn pre paid sim card), to find a phone that a store has sold they always record the imei number. This is what happened why I needed to get my receipt for insurance and I know for a fact my name was not on that receipt because I have just checked it against the pre paid one that I bought.

I decided to test this theory. I called up the Tea Tree Plaza store and told them that I had bought a pre paid phone from a store in another state and I wanted to know if I could get a copy of the receipt from her store. The girl on the phone said, "yes, all we need is the IMEI number in the back of the phone."

I actually then went into the Tea Tree Plaza store and pretended that I wanted to buy a pre paid phone and the same thing happened. A boy said that he needed to activate a pre-paid sim card with my pre paid phone. I went through a similar spiel with what happened at the Rundle Mall store and he refused to sell me the phone and that it was for warranty purposes that he needed to activate the sim card with the pre paid phone.

Strange.....considering that the girl from the Tea Tree Plaza store said earlier that all I needed was the IMEI number for a receipt.

I believe that the girl in the Rundle Mall store along with the boy at the Tea Tree Plaza store were just trying to bump up their quota of pre paid numbers for the month and I am absolutely disgusted.

I have since gone through the Vodafone website thoroughly and cannot find ANYTHING saying that all pre-paid phones have to have a pre-paid sim card activated with them. Vodafone, I am withdrawing my upgrade and am transferring all 3 of my numbers to another carrier as soon as my parents phones come out of contract!

......and all of this because one of your staff members demanded my personal details to sell something that she didn't need

I have just signed with Vodaphone, SIM only. I had read all the bad press and decided that too many family members were with vodaphone not too sign up in the short term for the cheapest plan (I now have to pay for a phone for the first time in years!!) I went through the online selection as I was going to port my number from another company as well and as it was only going to be a few days max would be faster than the nearest shop on the weekend.
My fun started after setting up on the 30th of Sept and then making enquiries on the 4th as to when I would receive the SIM. The "status" showed an update on the 1st Oct and nothing since. I wanted to knw what was up. The helpdesk were inept. As I did not have an account setup all they could say was there are notes in their system but I should get it soon. When I quizzed them on the statement in the online form that says "When should I expect delivery (1-2 days standard)" they said it can take about 10 days for the approval process to be done??? To which I "played" with them and pushed my point in many different ways to get them to show me they knew what good customer service is (did they bend over backwards? No way!!). I did this over 2 days and on the second day they told me there was a problem with the expiry date on the ccard I gave them so I gave them the details again. I thought about it and it was then a Friday i thought I would go to my nearest shop on the w/e. I rang them back again and asked thyem to cxl my request. Oddly enough, 3 hours later my ccard company rang me and said there was a security breach on my card where someone had billed $5 to my card and that they had a few of those that day and said I had to cut up my card!!! - Coincidence after cancelling my order!!!
SO, i went down to the shop on Sat, was helped brilliantly in store and got everything signed up correctly and was told 3-4 hrs for the number to be ported. ....Monday, still was on the old network and then got a txt from them asking me to ring them, seems the wrong (previous telco) account was entered and they had to redo it again. 2 hrs later it was all finally done.

Now I am a patient person as it did not fuss me as I had a working phone. i would have killed someone if i was dependent on a phone for business and it was the only one! But as I tried to stress to the staff, "you have set my expectations by giving me access to details of when I should expect things to be happening. Either remove the expectation or amend but most importantly be aware of what your company exposes to me regarding what the expectations are"!!! - this they did not understand.
So, I am looking at their performance over the next couple of months with regards to the "service" and whilst I work out what my usage will be and if they are squeky clean, 6 accounts stay with them, if not, I will do everything to convince my family to move to another carrier.

I've blogged my pain on blogspot. You can find it if you search jcatt. In a nutshell, I'm a psychologist running a full time private practice, and in the process of activating a new SIM, a florist in Martin Place was receiving all my phone calls, text messages and emails for an entire day. Due to the nature of my work, there are obviously serious privacy issues here.

I've blogged my pain on blogspot. If you go to jcatt, you'll find it. In a nutshell, I'm a psychologist running a full time private practice, and in the process of activating a new SIM card all my calls, texts and emails were received by a florist in Martin Place. There are serious privacy issues here, obviously, due to the nature of my work.

To the person who said they are getting emails stating they had insignificant funds i would be asking vodafone questions.

Read here

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1757521

That was yesterday and today they are doing work on their site HAS VODAFONE HAD A SECURITY BREACH AS WELL????????

11 months ago, I got a phone bill from Vodafone saying I signed up 2 phones from them, told them I've never been their customer and when I called the 2 numbers listed on the bill, they were different persons and unaware of how I'm getting their bills in my name and addresss! Vodafone said they would fix the problem. And after 11 months since that incident I got a letter from NRG telling me I owe Vodafone $4,310.83 and if I don't pay this account in full, may result in further action, which looked more like a threat and bully letter. Vodafone not only failed to fix the problem, they passed on my personal details to a third party without my knowledge! I'm wasting my enery, time and money calling them and it's just too stressful. If Vodafone was an orange, I'd just smash it with a hammer 100 times!!! It's so frustrating!!!

My ex-wife is working in vodafone call centre in Mumbai. She is accessing all
my personal information like call logs and threatening those people. Now I don't know what to do because the only people I can lodge complain with is in Mumbai and they not gonna do anything because my wife is there coleague.

I am with 3 and they convinced me to go to Vodafone with a pretty good deal. i accepted. I ordered an iphone 4 in white. I confirmed my address several times in the call and had it sent to my work so i would be there to sign for it. I ordered on the Monday and it was delivered on the wednesday - Fantastic right? Wrong - mega voda fail. They sent it to the wrong address. They also let someone other than me sign for it. I cannot find the address that they sent the phone to. I have walked up and down the street and asked locals and no one can find it. I dont believe the address even exists.

So I ring them - ask that they cancel the phone and that I am able to go to a store to pick one up.
Apparently it takes them up to 48 hours to cancel the service - then it will take them 5-7 business days to send another. They advised me that I cant speed up the process as this is normal procedure. Maybe so but it isnt normal procedure to give my phone to someone else so i figured we would be able to resolve the matter.

I was told someone would ring me back as i was not happy. i waited for 3 hours so I rang back. This time they told me the phone had been listed as missing and that they were posting one out to the wrong address still. I confirmed i wasnt happy to wait 9 business days and that i wanted to pick one up in store. She said she would get back to me. Then i got a call confirming my postal address but thats it - she said she was only confirming details and coudlnt help me any further.

another few hours pass again and i hear nothing. i ring and ask that a manager gives me a call - i was told it would take 1-2 hours. I asked if that would be 1 or 2 hours and she couldnt tell me.

I am very concerned that someone else has my phone and my personal details.
I am equally concerned that Vodafail arent willing to try and resolve this problem after monumentally stuffing up.

I am quickly running out of patience and am very close to contacting the ombudsman and taking my business elsewhere.

VODAFAIL!

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone knew anything about this:

http://community.vodafone.com.au/t5/Self-service-and-vodafone-com-au/Check-your-bank-statements-Fist-time-Vodafone-customer-not-happy/td-p/6759/page/1

in relation to this:

http://www.smh.com.au/business/major-banks-cancel-credit-cards-after-breach-20110527-1f72w.html

Is Vodafail responsible for this???

I Couldn't lock/bar my sim/phone after it was stolen. Automated messages kept telling me the department was closed. Called the 123 ask me anything service and I quickly found out that was a lie. Called hours later at night and someone from India told me they could only bar my sim and couldn't lock my phone because the systems were down. She said they would call me back tommorrow. Mean while all my personal information private photos etc are freely available to the thief. Plus I don't have a phone now so no one can call me back.

I have a remaining 6 months on my contract and i simply have had enough of vodafone. How can i get out of the contract without paying it out? Can i sight the recent "privacy issues" over Christmas?

I am sick of vodaphone. My calls are constantly doping out of reception and failing half way through calls. I was on hold for 1.5 hours to another company and my call just failed. Half of the time I can not send txts nor receive them, It takes forever to retrieve my voice mails and not to mention the personal info of its customers being leaked on the net in January including names, addresses and credit card details. This is an outrage. I currently have 18 months left on my contract and am desperately wanting to be released from it. I will even give my iphone 4 back. There has got to be a security breach from them. Is there anyone out there who has been released from there contract that can give me any info on how to get out of mine????

When can I get someone whom I can understand? Every time I ring I can never understand what they're saying.Sounds like bloody gibberish - probably is come to think of it!Never had the problem when Vodafail had account their services in Egypt. And I don't recall any privacy breach issues when they were there either.

3G internet likes to randomly disappear for days at a time. Every time i look at other providers for wireless internet, the 3G comes back within seconds (surprise?). The icing on the cake was weak security issues so everyone could take a look at personal details. Voda-Mega-Fail.

Had a problem in that Vodafone was repeatedly emailing to advise that the attempt to auto recharge my account failed. Twice a day, nearly every day for many months. They were trying to bill me for someone elses account on an old credit card number of mine that had been expired for nearly 2 years.

I rang them over a six month period at least twice a month. ON HOLD TIME was never less than 45 minutes.

Every time I spoke to them in their Malaysian call centre after getting on to someone whos accent was capabale of being understood, was promised that the problem was fixed.

So finally after MORE THAN 14 HOURS on hold and talking to people with a poor understanding of English, I got to speak to one of their supervisors, a lady named Magna, who helped finally fix it.

Yea!

Curiously enough I have never had a coverage problem with Vodafone, but vodafones customer service is pure crap.

Been waiting for a call or sms from my son interstate. Very distressing and worrying. Now I understand why I haven't heard from him It's his VF!
Waiting for May when my contract ceases and I can use my phone again. In the meantime I am using Optus prepaid on an old phone that didn't let my down even through the cyclone in Cairns this year. BUT I am extremely AGGRIEVED!
When the story of the security breach came to light, I immediately visited a major Melbourne VF store and consequently spoke with call centre staff and managers (all of whom advised me not to take notice of Australian media). Three times I was assured my phone could be unlocked but only if I paid a penalty for breaching the contract! So who breached the contract!
I have put the phone away and do not use the so called"service".

To avoid the penalty I am making the payments but I want my money back!

Can these IDIOTS get anything right, OMG I cant even pay their patethic monthly bill without getting errors. Logged onto Vodafone website, entered all my details and credit card number, and whallah- ERROR- read below.

Now I got to log on again in 2hrs, load my details in again and check that their stupid system actually got my payment. WOW what a waste of everyone's FU****ken time. GET IT RIGHT VODACRAP.

Pay My Bill
An error has occurred.
It's taken longer than expected to get a response to your payment. Please do not attempt to pay again right now as your payment may have been received. To confirm your payment status, please wait at least 2 hours and log in to My Vodafone. If it wasn't successful, we recommend you try paying again at that time. We apologise for any inconvenience.

Australia has become a monopoly. Money talks, big companies pay for things they want people to hear. Paying for advertising on tv limits what they can say. That's why we have the accc, what do they do fuck all. If I've got a problem with a service that I am paying for in australia it should be handled with Someone in Australia. If that person has my personal details or tells he's mate, Australian authorities have no control to do anything about it. The government is great at taxing every Australian perhaps they should start taxing security issues. When a company like vodafone Australia can rip off every day australians and not be shut down is a joke. Their 3G service is useless, their 2G network is not much better.

I made a payment as soon as bill arrived on my e-mail, their system didn't cleared it and now they are asking for that amount in my next bill too......I called customer service three times already and all they do is take my name credit card number, all the details and ask me to call in next 5 days.....and the vodafone website never shows uses detail in 3-4 days and when the expiery date for the month arrives the website doesn't show detail for 7-8 days.......

WARNING TO myvodafone USERS!!!
Noticed a few days ago that the log out button on the myvodafone site does not work properly. It takes you to a page and makes you think you have logged out, they also suggest you close your browser. If you do not close your browser you will not be logged out!

Where to start?? Firstly they cannot spell my name right - apparently "Elizabeth" was too out of the ordinary. They cannot get my phone number right - I sent it off because it needed to be replaced. 2 months and after numerous calls to Vodafone and the insurance company - They finally realised it wasnt MY fault and that they had written down my number wrong. And the worst FAIL of all - they cannot get my credit card number right, so each month when I get debited, the next month I also get an overdue notice. Ive contacted them so many times I cant remember, wasted numerous hours of my life on hold, as well as many trips in store. Each time I was told that they have updated my details on the system, yet the problem still occurs, even though I always have money in my account. I have given up, and simply pay it as a normal bill. So my credit rating is probably screwed thanks to them and their incompetence. And yes my network coverage is non existent.

Personal details removed

7th Feb, 2011

To: Vodaphone Device Return

Bright Point Australia

Warehouse B

1 Garden Road

Melrose, NSW 2085.


Like many other people whose Vodaphone hand held devices have been causing them considerable inconvenience, I finally lost patience and decided to ditch your service and look for something a bit more reliable. So I went to a Vodaphone store at a Brisbane shopping centre and asked if I could pay my account and hand in the hand set.



The person there, while being very helpful, said they couldn't accept the device but all I had to do was ring 1300 650 410 and request that a satchel be sent to my house. I could then simply drop the device into the satchel, and then into the post box.


I rang the number and, after getting the usual run a round from that brainless bimbo answering machine, was switched thru to India where I spent the next hour or so trying to find out how to get the satchel. They were extremely reluctant to give out this sensitive information and several times during the long rambling discussion, I was asked who had given me the phone number and the information on how to request a satchel. I got the faint impression that, if they found out who it was, then that persons future career prospects at Vodaphone may not be too rosey.


The fellow at the other end of the line then attempted to steer me thru a complicated series of steps that may solve the problems I was having. But all to no avail. Eventually he conceded defeat and said he'd transfer me to Technical Support. However, during his attempt to do this, we got cut off.


After a suitable period of time had elapsed, I called the number again and after another skirmish with the bimbo talking robot, was switched thru to India where I asked the fellow on the other end if Vodaphone actually had a postal address in Australia.


Why do you want to know? he asked, rather pompously and suspiciously.


At this point I was becoming rather dangerously close to losing my temper and told him, in no un certain terms, that I wanted the address so I could send them a letter and it was none of his business anyway, as it was simply his job to be of service to his employers customers. This had the desired effect and he suddenly blurted out the address.

So, please find enclosed the mobile phone. Also could you email my last months account to me so I can pay it and that will be the end of our association. I'll send a copy of this letter to you by email if I can find an email address to send it to. I daren't risk another one hour chat on the phone with someone in India so I'll probably hopefully get it off your web site.

(Personal details removed)

I have spent MANY hours in the past month trying to get an answer about my issue of NO SERVICE on my vodafone iphone since relocating. I was given a 100% guarantee that I would have full service in my new home so I renewed my contract in June 2010. When I arrived here I had one bar or none but persevered, thinking once I move again into our newly built home I should be right as I had given them my exact address and they assured me I would have full coverage. When I moved in here in Dec 2010, I ended up having NO SERVICE 24/7. Jan 2011, I decided enough was enough and after reading all the stories on here and reading through the class action advice . I made the first call and was on hold for an hour. I left a msg for them to call me back..they called me back and I didn't speak to anyone til I came off hold after another hour, and THEY HAD CALLED ME! After approx 8-10 hours during the last month of being handballed to one call centre person to another, I finally demanded to speak to the retention manager tonight where he told me that he did not believe I had no service and they would not help me in anyway. If I wanted out I'd have to pay $1200 in early exit fees.Needless to say, I was livid. I asked how a call centre staff member could deem me a "liar" about my service accessibility from a call centre in India. After an hour of being told that they could do nothing for me (they suggested I try 3 I said what do you think I am, stupid...Vodafone OWN 3 as well) the "retention manager" decided that in good faith they'd waiver the cancellation fee but I'd have to pay $245 for my handset.

I am soooo angry and frustrated and feel totally ripped off. Can anyone else advise from their own experience if I should accept the offer and just pay the $245 and be done with it, or keep up the frustrating effort of calling the customer service centre and get out of contract with no penalty at all. I have lodged a complaint with the Ombudsmen .If you have had a similiar experience and have some advice for me could you email me at (Personal Details removed)



Thanks for the advice

Apart from the call drop outs, delay in voicemail delivery and the frustration of spending numerous hours on hold, I have been dealing with outgoing email problems from my Iphone which was recommended by Vodafone to purchase in 2008. It started over 7 months ago I would receive emails from my host server but when ever I replied or sent an email from the Iphone it went into Cyber Space. It took a little while before I realised my emails were not being received. I am self employed and therefore rely heavily on what package Vodafone sales team sold to me. Vodafone firstly told me that it was my problem as no one else was experiencing these types of problems and I must have done something to cause this issue. After further waiting on the phone with Vodafone customer service representitives and being told it was not Vodafone but my host company problem, I then spent many hours with my host company trying to assist me without success. Vodafone finally admitted their fault, it was a major spam problem they had experienced causing the problem. The rep told me they were working on it and should not take to long before going back to normal. After waiting a few more weeks I went through the same old Vodafone frustrating contact process (hours and days on hold)and was told to use an alternative website to reply to my emails. This worked for about a 3 days then I started having the same problems again with their recommendations!! Please note, I have always paid my bill on time during this whole frustrating ordeal. All of my calls were naturally recorded by Vodafone, and all correspondence updated on my account, this showed a conversation I had with them stating they would contact me when this problem was rectified before the next billing cycle but they would inform me as their top international tech team were being flown into Australia to fix it. During Christmas they barred my out going calls, I was interstate on holidays and sat on the phone for 6 hours over 2 days trying to talk to someone from Vodafone. Finally spoke to a rep who understood my frustration and returned my phone to operational status as he was over the constant failure of Vodafone. Minor compensation has been offered along the way in the form of a $25 reduction in my bill!! I have not mentioned many other occassions I have been on the phone to Vodafone as this message would be longer then the Harry Potter novel. I spoke to a tech just recently who now said the problem only effects the Iphone so I should look at getting a Blackberry, when I mentioned considering it was Vodafone who told me to purchase 6 Iphones originally what could they offer given the inconvenience, his answer was "nothing as it is your choice". Ps my outgoing emails are still not operational even with all of their recommendations.



Regards



(Personal Details removed)

I'm really just after some advice...

Firstly, over the past month or so, I have been in contact with Vodafone and Crazy Johns (phone dealer who I got the contract through) mainly because I'm not happy with the privacy issues - which I feel is totally understandable on my part. Both Vodafone and Crazy Johns told me 2 different stories, and neither were willing to help when I mentioned what I believe to be a breach of contract on VF's behalf; therefore I want out of my contract. After the usual 15 calls going unanswered then going to the back of the queue, I finally get through to someone and the call drops out?! What the!?!?!? Yet another thing to complain about I guess! This particular conversation went to 3 different people without a resolution.

Secondly, I've recently been offered a job in an area where Vodafone don't have coverage. When asked what could happen with my contract in this instance, the Crazy Johns rep said it was my fault for moving away from the coverage and that they couldn't do anything. However, I am yet to raise this with Vodafone.

Really, I'm just after some advice on if anyone has had similar experiences, and what the outcome was? Also which angle do you think will get the best results (ie out of contract FOC. I currently have 5 months left on my contract.)

This is my story I was on the $49 CAP last year and decided I needed a better plan due to being over billed $700 because of some people I knew at the time that used my phone and went over my cap one weekend without my knowledge. I called vodaphone paid the bill then asked them to put me on the unlimited cap because I thaught I could get more out of my dollar. It was all ok and I was told that my plan is now unlimited and I'm free to make as many calls and txts as I like and not have to worry anymore. My next bill was $1200! so I immediately called vodaphone to discuss the issue. Apparently the plan doesn't switch over untill the following month, even tho they failed to let me know or let me know and actually told me I was allready on unlimited. I spoke to a woman who basically assured me it was my fault and they would never do that (don't ask me how she knows what was said? I guess she must think I'll believe anything she says). The ordeal confused me terribly because she took $400 of the bill as a "gesture of kindness" and apologized to me. So I reluctantly paid it but here is the kicker! the following month I was charged $1100!!! I called vodaphone I complained and I was told that they cannot withdraw that bill because they had allready taken $400 of my last bill and that I've run out of "gestures of kindness" no word of a lie. I refused to pay the bill and I was called at work 3 weeks later from the collections department. The man basically said that if I don't pay at least $800 immediately over the phone hes barring my phone and if I hang up hes barring my phone. I told him I was at work and I can't pay for anything because I don't have anything to pay it with or the time. He ignored that and said goodbye hung up and my phone was barred immediately. I complained about that to vodaphone and it was the only complain they ever took seriously. What a nightmare I feel like I'm trapped with vodaphone they're going to send me broke.

Brodie Carey
(PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED)

I started using Vodafone around 2 years ago as a Pre-paid customer. I switched from Telstra because of the caps Vodafone offered which are great and have never really had a problem.
Two months ago, I decided to go on a plan and my problems have been never ending. Not only have they charged me for an extra month that I haven't used, I constantly have to resend my messages up to about 4 or 5 times before they actually send. My internet is too slow to use, I drop out of reception in places where I should be receiving full reception, and I cannot make calls during certain times of the day. At one stage I couldn't call or receive calls at all!
This is an utter joke. I pay good money for service that I am not receiving. I refuse to pay my phone bill and want to know what else I can do about it. I want to get out of my plan without having to pay the fee. I don't believe I should! Vodafone are not providing the service they claim to be able to provide, not to mention the personal details of customers being able to be viewed by literally any person.
I want to know if there is a way out. Can anyone suggest anything?

I shouldn't even be in this mess!! I was happily with 3 for two phones and my mobile broadband. Then about two months ago I get a phone call from a Vodafone sales person telling me that my mobile broadband contract with 3 was running out and that I needed to sign up with Vodafone because 3 will be disappearing - HOW DID SOMEONE FROM VODAFONE KNOW THAT MY CONTRACT WAS UP - PRIVACY BREACH!!!. So, being the gullible sucker that I am, I agreed. Now I am suffering in hell as my mobile broadband as active only about 10 percent of the time and I cannot send emails. I rang the technical support people and they promised to call me back with an answer within half an hour - three days ago!

just got ANOTHER spam telemarketer call. this is the 5th one at least this week. ever since that security breach this has been happening, ive never had telemarketer calls before that!

Was with '3' Mobile.

Ordered a Iphone4 with vodaphone once my plan ended. Did this online, but was 'denied' due to lack of identity proof.

So order one on phone. Order confirmed, but told with take 4 weeks.

I go to store, who give me a phone straight away.

I then call vodaphone (several hours later) and cancel (with confirmation number e.t.c) the order for my Iphone 4.

4 Weeks later, I receive TWO iPhones in the mail (one from the internet request that was denied, and one from the phone request that was cancelled - I have proof of all this).

I immediately (that day) call vodaphone. Wait several hours. Get them to send me a return envelope for BOTH phones. I stress that I have two, and I need two return envelopes.

One envolope appears, 2-3 weeks later.

I call again, tell them to send another envelope, tell them that if they charge me for these phones im gonna be furious.

Anyway, they promise 2-3 days. Week passes - nothing.

4 weeks after recieving the phone, spending hours trying to sort it out, NOT being sent the correct return, not being able to return these to the store...

I get charged...around $2100, taken straight out my account.

I RAGE. Go to a store, rage at the staff, who tell me they can't get me a refund immediately. I rage some more, and they agree to call their state manager - who organises a refund in two days. They also organise a courier to return phones, and confirm that phones have been returned.

I'm disgruntled but let it slide.

Two weeks after - ANOTHER F(*&ING $2100 out my account. This time I go into a blinding rage and storm into vodaphone, I tell them I want my money NOW or I'm going to the ACC and whoever else will listen to this.

I'm a student, I can't afford $2100, let alone $21 to be unexpectedly taken out my phone account.

Anyway, I get overcharge fees from my bank, I can't pay rent, can't eat, have no $$$ for several days. Money gets refunded. I'm assured that I will get some sort of compensation.

I get ONE months free bill. One months, after spending at a minimum, 10-15 hours trying to sort this out.

Anyway,

Anyone think I should follow up? Complain more? Will this get anything done?

feel free to e-mail suggestions on what to do to - (PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED)

ever since the security breach ive been getting countless calls from random numbers and when i look them up on google it comes up on the scam/telemarketer website

I had a Vodaphone account that was stolen by another person and closed without my knowledge or consent. I complained to the Telco Ombudisman and finally got it sorted but at one stage I was looking at a bill of several thousand dollars. Top tip - don't get the Communications Minister involved, absolutely no interest in helping.

After being a customer with Vodafone Australia for 10 years I have never, ever experienced the terrible service to the degree I am experiencing today. Fourteen months ago I decided to go for a new post-paid plan, choosing Vodafone was a given as I am one of the few people who believe in brand loyalty. It wasnt the most attractive plan available to me but I though "Hey, I haven't had any issues in 10 years of service, whats the harm in signing to a more costly contract?". This was MY fail, assuming the best from a 2-bit telcom struggling to keep its head above water..never again.
First it started with drop outs. In rural areas, then suburban areas, hell even on Pitt Street for a few days whilst at work. Often when I see coverage I ask my friends "Have you got reception?" Their replies were always yes, followed by an explanation of how great Telstra and Optus coverage is.
I lost a few hundred dollars throughout 2010 due to drop-outs with vodafone. This is with a majority of calls being made from North Western Suburbs and Sydney CBD. FAIL VODAFONE

Then there was the phone insurance issue. Another premium I pay for that I didn't receive without wasting valuable time arguing on the phone. My phone was water damaged and upon making a claim I was told it was rejected, due to physical tampering. I've owned the phone from new, nobody has touched the phone except me from new and I certainly have never, nor attempted to open the handset. I spent $140 on insurance premiums and then a further $150 for a replacement handset. The process spanned over 1 month and cut into 7 of my working hours. Thats more money than I care to share, but my was time reimbursed? No. Was there an apology? No. Did I pay a ridiculous amount to receive another poorly built handset that their consumer products team have selected? Yes. FAIL VODAFONE

Then I hear about lawsuits, and customer details being accessed remotely outside of Vodafone. Sweet, so now who knows which hands my credit card details lie with, or my personal details, or my call records, or my phone number. Wheres the privacy? FAIL VODAFONE

Then floods hit, a national disaster. Coverage was knocked out in Brisbane during an EMERGENCY. Thats just great Vodafone, poorly design your telco infrastructure so that in dire times nobody can use your service when they need to most. I wonder how much avoidable damage was caused thanks to people being denied a service they are entitled to?

After 10 years, this relationship has broken down. Im disgusted at the way you operate, and the lack of responsibility you take for troubles you cause your valuable customers. Im not paying my next bill, because Vodafone you fail.

I ended my contract with Vodafone late last year, and switched to another telco who paid part of my unexpired contract with Vodadone. I waited and waited until I had to part with vodafone, with 200 dollar payment to them, I was so desperate to get out.
When vodafone called me in Australia 22 months prior to resign my contract with them, they gave me the Nokia E71. I set my phone up to use with my WIFI network at home, so I would not be downloading from Vodafone data and being charged for this. While I did use some of the data from Vodafone when I was away from home, doing internet banking and such, this was very very minimal. Everything was fine after a few bills, until one day they sent me an extra large bill of 1500 approx.

I rang around was told that I had downloaded a large amount of data, and after going back and forth, back and forth was told that the Nokia E71 would auto switch to gprs vodafone data when my wifi signal dropped out. I was always within range of my wifi at home and had a strong signal, so i explained that this could not be the case.
They told me that I my wifes phone also had been doing this as well, and thats why it had been such a large bill. But here is the thing, my wifes phone, had never never been connected at anytime. They told me that the htc phone my wife had, "automatically" updated "things" I still dont know what they are. They thought I came down in the last shower.
I am not stupid and know exactly how to work the phones i told them, and that my wifes htc phone had never auto downloaded before this contract, because this was my old phone, and never had anything like this happened before.

No matter what I said, I could not reason with the call centre in Egypt. I spoke to the manager in the Call Centre Eddie. He could not answer any of my questions regarding the issue. They could not even tell me what kind of data had been downloaded. He kept repeating himself, "you should had gotten a package that had capped downloading costs. He would not listen to anything I had to say. He cut my phone bill in half, but that was not the point, I wanted someone to make sense, someone to tell me what all the charges were about.
I tried to call someone in Australia. I called my local vodafone shop, and was told, you will have to call the centre in Egypt. We cant do anything. I emailed the Australia Sydney office and was told basically yeah yeah we know your upset, we cant do a thing, call the centre in Egypt.
So even though someone called me in Australia to resign the contract with me, they now could not call me to answer some of my questions.

sorry are you still with me???

When I called just before I ended my contract with Vodafone, the guy in Egypt told me he could not tell me the finalized amount owing on my account if I were to leave at that moment. It makes me wonder if this true, if, what do kind of computer systems are they running.

we could always sms a number to see how much of our cap, or what was owing on my bill at anytime, so why couldn't they.

After I left, I kept getting phone calls from them, and their market researches, and asking me personal details as to why I left....what was I paying now, why this why that. I was scared they were going to make up some more charges and send them to me.
I still am living in fear....the phones ringing....is that them??

on top of every other issue ive had with vodafone (a whole other story with netowrk issues like everyone else), this takes the cake. i didnt want my bill direct debited anymore , firstly due to their privacy issues, secondly as im planning on leaving them asap, so i logged onto myvodafone and cancelled my direct debit. to my surprise, they direct debited me today, overdrawing my account (i didnt have the money in there as wasnt expecting any direct debits). Just as a test, i went back into myvodafone, which showed the direct debit still active. i deactivated it, it told me the direct debit was removed, i logged out, logged back in, and SURPRISE! the direct debit is still active!,i informed them of this today, they didnt really seem to care that their website has such a flaw, didnt offer any compensation for the inconveniance, and unless i send them my private bank statement showing overdrawn fee i wont get any compensation for that (like hell, considering their record with my private information , they aint seein nothin!)

On Sunday the 17th October i was burgled and my phone and wallet stolen. I rang vodafone as soon as i realised my phone was stolen to cancel the sim so it could not be used. I rang at around 2pm and my call was finally answered at 3.30pm. The operator told me that the phone could not be stopped on weekends and that i would have to ring back during business hours. I told him how ridiculous that was and that i wanted to block the sim so i would not be charged with calls the thief decided to make. The operator said he would transfer me to some other department and maybe they could do it. So i was put on hold again and after another 90mins, at 5pm somebody else answered and eventually blocked my sim card.

Its quite humerous how it took 3hrs to get through to vodafone, whilst it took the police 15min to arrive at my house and 45min for forensic police to arrive and take fingerprints. It was quite annoying trying to talk to police whilst having 1 ear listening to vodafone on hold music.

Since then i have gone into a vodafone shop and got a new sim with my old number and i purchased a phone from the shop (after waiting 40min in a queue).

Yesterday i thought i better ring vodafone to update my billing details due to my credit card being stolen and i have now been issued with a new credit card number. I rang vodafone at 4pm and at 5pm i gave up and i decided to look in the web site to see if i could find a way to do it without wasting my time on hold to vodafone. I eventually worked out how to change my direct debit details on the web site so they are now up to date.

Today i received an SMS from vodafone telling me my last bill was unsuccessful in being paid and that i must pay it ASAP to "prevent restrictions to your service".

I have just paid the bill by credit card, it would be good if Vodafone could answer there customer hotline as quick as they let you know your bill is overdue.

After all this occuring i decided to switch to telstra. In doing this i knew i would be up for a bill for about $600 for cancelling contract. SO i went ahead with it and a few weeks later i received my final bill for about $600 so i rang up and paid it on my credit card.

The next week i noticed they had debitted it the $600 again from my credit card. SO i rang them up again, usual on hold for ever. The lady told me that she would have a look, first she said it was not an error and i did owe $1200. i said that cannot be right, so she decided to look into and ring me back. 2 days later she called back and said i was right and my credit card would be credited.
2 weeks later still no credit on my credit card, so i rang them again to see whatwas happening, on hold again for ages and finally get through to someone and he tells me it hasnt been "processed yet" and that he was going to do now and i should get in few days.
Finally about 4 weeks after being double charged i got my money back and hopefully my last dealings with Vodafone

I tried to pay off my Vodafail bill of $9. It would not accept an online payment. I called Vodafail and was on hold for half hour, finally put through, then transferred to 5 different people. Each time they asked me to repeat my personal information and why I was calling. Each time they said they could not take payment and assured they would transfer me to someone who would.

After the fifth transfer I told the Vodafail staff I have spent the past half hour trying to give them money which nobody seemed to take. She assured me multiple times she would transfer me to the right person. Then...she HUNG UP ON ME. I called again and was on hold for about 40 minutes before I hung up.

Vodafail sucks.

My technically illiterate mother recently purchased a Vodafone internet dongle. IT worked perfectly when it was set up and easily downloaded. After 1 week she tried to use it again and whilst it would connect it would not download. It took 6 minutes for the Facebook homepage to even display. She called Vodafone who told her it was 1)her computer 2) her USB port 3) where the computer was located in the house (without acknowledging that it had worked perfectly well in the same place before) not once did they mention they had known network issues. They have become an absolute joke of a company. I noticed the other day when they had a security breach they issued a press statement and took immediate action (Because they could be prosecuted if they did not) where as people have been having network issues for months and no statement (with any valuable info) or action has been taken (is this because they cant be charged for it so don't care)?

i cant use the phone because of coverage and i my personal information is leaked.

yeah my calls dont connect or come through sometimes, but my real concern is im getting spam SMS's from scammers saying ive won BILLIONS of dollars.

Bit strange how this has just happened after the release of the security breach?.....still currently on hold to see if it can be sorted.....

Or message this Vodafone employee he got me out a big drama with vodafail
thanks
(PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED)

Vodafail took 26 days for a human to reply to my email. 3 hours for a human to answer my phone call. I signed up to Twitter as it seemed to be the most effective way to get answers to simple questions. How absurd that I am forced to communicate in 140 characters with a company that owns a mobile network. When I finally spoke to a human and I asked about the security breach they told me it was a rumour spread by competing companies. Days later Vodafone fire staff over the breach. So exactly who is it that is spreading rumours about competitors? Vodafail management appear to be compulsive liars.

Had issues with network sent mail to (PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED) u issue got resolved :)

I live in Eltham, North East Melbourne. One Month ago my service simply disappeared from my and husbands phone. All trouble shooting was tried to no avail.One month of hours and hours a day on hold, never being called back, trips to vodafone stores, no one has a clue or are able to help, no one able to cancel my contract, we will call you back..............nothing. TIO complaint response was useless, they said if its not resolved with vodafone in 10 days call us back! Im loosing business big time as calls dont even register or go to message bank! I emailed the CEO of Vodafone yesterday (PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED) and was contacted immediately to be told we will have this problem resolved within 2 days. They bloody better, how much patience must one possess!!

I live 5 kms outside the Adelaide CBD, I use my phone for work. I go through lengthy periods with no signal available. When I do call someone calls continually drop out. And now anyone who can access the vodafone website can access my personal details. At least the service works well enough so that I can receive my reminder to make sure I pay my bill on time.

i am constantly having reception black outs on my network, extremely delayed text msg receipt and voicemail retrieval doesnt seem to be working. i have only had this issue for a few months and though it was the case that my phone was playing up when i saw the article in the paper and report on tv i knew it wasnt just me. my mobile is less then 12 months old and considering its one of the latest i phones figured finally it wasnt the issue. i have been with vodafone since day dot, literally 10 years. this month i was late in paying my bill by a few days , first instance in the duration of my loyalty with the company, i woke up went to check my emails and reply to a txt msg and noticed nothng was coming or going through. i went to use my phone to make a call and what do you know my phone is barred. this is ridiculous, after not receiving a payment of $100 odd dollars you go and cut my service? im trying to run a business and wasnt around a computer when the payment was due to transfer the money and the best thing you guys can do is cut my service? i think after this incident im going to cut my service with you and let all those years of loyalty go down the drain cos clearly it means jack all to you as it now does to me. loyalty , whats that vodafone asks themselves. its not a word i will be able to associate with this company in the future.

oh and another thing, i really appreciate my personal details being released and getting hacked to, its really great to know your happy to take our money but cant provide the service you promise and have done so in the past. whats going on in your telco?? trying to save a few dollars by cutting people off perhaps?

I went to get a mobile broadband plan with Vodafone in November last year. Service was alright until I had 1 bar 3G signal, incredibly crap speeds, & it has stayed that way since beginning of January 2011. So much for a network maintenance, which some foreign customer service guy claimed would not take longer than a week. Must be some lying generic response, just an Indian version of Lara. The towers seem to be unable to handle the amount of users they are constantly attracting and taking in using their misleading marketing. Vodafone emphasizes their 'good' coverage and 'speed', which is so abysmal that even a snail can travel faster than the data that reaches my usb modem. Im living in a suburb with 3G coverage, but the connection dropouts are just appalling. It happens every few minutes. There is no point in using GPRS mode, since it's even slower than the oldest person alive. These days I seem to be paying monthly fees for nothing. You get several GB of usage and you can't even use it. This is seriously epic fail. It all started with me reading Vodafone's ad clustered site for technical information regarding coverage, speed, & service. They claimed to cover metropolitan areas, which included the suburb I live in. They claimed a reasonable speed range that most other telcos quote and boasted about their service. Then I waited an hour at the store to be served, the dealers seem to rather enjoy chatting with one customer at a time very slowly until their shift is over. To me, it felt like days. Finally I got my plan set up. After sorting out the VMC software problems, the product worked (yes I know strange as it may seem, it actually worked for a few glorious weeks) until it struggled again. Here I am, poor signal for weeks, 0-20Kbps 3G, & almost non-existent service. Even if the network tower is not far away & there is nothing major blocking the signal. Heres where the pain begins that customers have endured. I called Vodafone technical support 35 times, 30 of them were Lara transfer problems leading to call cut offs. WTF is the point of Lara's telemaze if it leads to cut offs. It's like having to solve a f*d up maze only to reach a dead end. The other 5 times led to horrid patchy musical hold up times equivalent to a theatrical length film. Finally I got to a foreign guy who told me these lame responses, which I, a pc expert, would have already tried. He still insisted me to try his troubleshooting even though I told him 10 times I've already done it. Ranging from reinstalling the device & software to deleting browsing history. Lame. Still got crap speed & signal. I really need to 'troubleshoot' someone in the head. Then he rambles on about a network upgrade in my area. Another generic response in their agenda. AND they always say there is no deadline for these upgrades. I hope people don't have to wait a lifetime's journey to get full signal again. Knowing their call centres are foreign these days, I gave up because even maintaining a call with them (that is prone to dropouts) will take blood, sweat, & tears. Now we have 12000+ Australians lobbying for a lawsuit against Vodafone, for reasons similar to my woes. I wouldn't be very surprised. We also have a recent issue involving customer data security breaches over the web. All Vodafone does is tell us that everything is fine. IT IS NOT. Whirlpool forums is packed daily with unheard complaints of Vodafone's services. In fact the threads are so vast it could form a large encyclopedia or a Lord of The Rings novel. As for the Vodafone staff seeking sympathy, think again. You are the cratered face of the company, so you must deal with the aggressive amount of recent customer woes. It is us customers that have all the power in the end. We can choose, in the extreme case, to do a mass exodus rather than put up with Vodafone's recent incompetences. We suffering customers (which seems to be a majority of Vodafone's customers in Australia, looking at how many complaints have plagued across the net) could all leave Vodafone & go to Telstra, Optus, etc. That will leave Vodafone Australia dying out of business, which will mean the Vodafone staff will lose their jobs. But then heres another issue. When customers attempt to cancel their plan & account, the customer service person attempts to hold on to the already dissatified customer for dear life like a leech, offering lame discounts & bartering. We shouldn't have to pay the remaining cost of the plan if we get slow unusable 3G net for weeks on end. We shouldn't have to rely on TIO and other full blown agencies to get our word across. This Vodafail site clearly indicates the last straw for the telco. It's just ridiculous, seeing that 'Vodafone' is an international business. If Vodafone doesn't fix these customer & network services, then too bad for the future. There won't be much for the telco to fix once its over. Not to mention the irony of 'gain sharing', I can barely post this using my Vodafone mobile broadband.

Does anyone know how you go about getting vodafone to delete my personal information?
As I am no longer with vodafone I don't trust them to keep my info on their records. How can I go about getting them to delete it from their records, then checking to make sure they have done it. I have considered calling and asking but I'm sure it couldn't be that easy, could it
Any opinions would be greatly appreciated

I just got a text message from Vodacrap apologizing and explaining about their security breach and of course I went to post a comment reply and my phone is timing out. Of course it is! Writing this on my landline PC now. They have put in 24 hour password changes....err that is security process 101, where is this retarded company -1985?????

OK. I did not think data speed and coverage could get any worse but it is. I have read what is happening when other people try & get issues resolved & having tried myself it seems hopeless & we have to wait until our contracts expire. What about the poor folk in Qld on Vodafail... They really need the service to be up & running properly in such a situation. You should be ashamed of yourselves Vodafail and karma dictates you won't be in business for much longer. The security breach is totally scary & I don't believe a word that comes out of Vodafail.

Constant dropped calls, no reception in home, on the train, on the highway, or even in Sydney CBD. Now the internet baddies have my personal information. Well done Vodafone.

It used to be really good service, free phones for long term customers but now its no communiation, drop outs, network not available. The final straw is the privacy issue. tomorrow I am going looking for a new provider. If everyone sues then the company will cease to exist.

Issue 1: Poor customer service? Maybe not super poor, but less than ideal for sure.
Once my previous contract ended just midway through last year, I bought myself a handset from online (a Nexus One shipped from the States) and changed myself to a Sim-only cap which included 3G data allowance.
3G didn't work. The Vodafone dealer/reseller told me I needed a new sim (er... ok) so I go to the official brand store and wait in line forever (at least the chick who served me was polite enough) and I told them my problem and that I was told to get a new sim. No questions, suggestions, second opinions, just an "ah, ok" response and they gave me a new sim. Still no 3G. I thought my phone was faulty, but then I swapped sims with a friend with the same phone and that magically worked (although my sim f**ked his phone up momentarily). So I succumb to calling the call centre where the very helpful individual on the other end of the line informed me that data wasn't enabled on my account. They helped switch it on for me but they couldn't answer why it was disabled in the first place, despite my probing and cajoling. Although what I -really- enjoy is the fact that the staff in-store couldn't even take the initiative to solve the problem properly by checking my account options to see whether data was enabled in the first place.

Issue #2: Reception issues
I've had audio quality issues in the past (others not being able to hear me) and chalked it up to my handset (an original 1st gen iPhone). I changed my phone and plan, but since moving to my new place I've noticed a brand new set of reception issues. Nowadays, my phone calls often consist of the other person's voice cutting in and out such that I can't even follow what words they're saying, let alone piecing together a sentence, and eventually the call just drops out. The other person can hear everything I say, I just can't seem to hear them. In my unit this seems to happen 99.99% of the time. I play the walk-around-the-unit-repeating-"hello? hello? are you there?" game until I find a spot where I can start to hear them. It's not my handset, because it doesn't happen everywhere in the world/Sydney. It's not my unit, because everyone else who passes through my unit (including my housemates) are fine. I have to admit I was in denial at first, but now I'm pretty sure I'm a victim of sh*t poor service.
My family's mobile plans are all through the one Vodafone account which I manage. I can only hope that they aren't experiencing the same issues as I am because I loathe to think that our family is funding this freaking circus freak show that is Vodafone AU.

Issue #3: Security breach
Seriously. WTF. How stupid can you freaking be? Any and all breaches should be traceable because every single staff member should have a unique friggen login ID (amongst other authentication protocols). And high-turnover/low-level staffers should have the most limited access to personal information possible (if a mere dealer is responsible for such a serious breach, then it is most -definitely- the fault of Vodafone AU and its poor business/IT practices).
If there are indeed instances of "communal" login IDs in place at Vodafone branches/resellers/whatever, I don't see how changing the passwords every 24hrs is helping to track/isolate an offending employee/dealer who is using a login that is also used by n individuals (where n is > 1).

Issue #4: Lara
I hate automated phone menus which ask for verbal responses/cues. But my goodness, Lara is the ONLY one who makes me swear like a sailor within 20 seconds every freaking time I call. I feel very sorry for the individual behind Lara's voice. I just know that if I heard her on the street I'd instantly think of Lara and be like "F*ck f*ckity f*ck aarrrggghhhh!" and want to punch her in the face.

Been with vodafone since around 1997. Leaving them this week. Won't be back.

Last 18 months:
Poor signal/no signal
Last 6 months:
The same text messages are being sent 50-60 times.
Photo messages are turning up 6-8 hours late. Often resulting in waking my friends up at 3am!

Today:
Privacy Breaches

I'm gone!

I'm living in Queensland and have been going through a disaster of my own here in Dalby. We rely on our mobiles in times like these as power gets cut. Well guess what happened to me yesterday? My mobile stops working when I most need it. I have been trapped in my house since yesterday morning, luckily my power has come back on but for a while it was off, it feels so isolated here, being surrounded in water , and not being able to contact anyone. I have another year of this hell with vodafone as I am on a contract , soon as it is over I am leaving it thats for sure..Floods will get worse by this afternoon and my phone still has SOS in red in the corner, it wont ring out :(

(PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED - Vodafail.com Team)

No.1 - I never receive spam texts and I have received two since yesterday. I wonder if this has anything to do with the privacy breach???
Anyone else experiencing the same problem?
No.2 - Vodafone's total performance is absolute crap. I tried to send them an email yesterday only to be informed on their site that the email page was unavailable, couldnt even get into my account details!!!

Oh well whats new, same old service we have come to expect and I think its about time we all stopped talking and started to take the only action available. Talk with your feet and find another provider, Vodafone does not deserve our business.
Totally fed up to the back teeth!!!

I have been trying to get my Iphone4 for almost 3 months now. My 1st Gen Iphone is all but completely broken (won't call or recieve calls). After calling their customer service centre every week for 8 weeks I got fed up and went into a store. The staff were the rudest, most unhelpful customer service people I had ever come across. Once again I was told to "come back next week". What kind of person has the time to make a pilgrimage to a Vodafone/3 store every week to see if they have stock. I was told there was no way to put my name down to reserve my phone and I would just have to wait.

The week of Christmas I went into a store and I was told I had to call a number now to order my phone and that they were now taking names. I am two weeks out from the end of my contract, and have been in upgrade period for 2.5 months. I still don't have my phone. It was supposed to arrive on the 6th of Jan. Then the 7th of Jan. I have called Vodafone twice and have been told that it is a problem with the Air mail that it has been sent by. It is now the 11th of Jan and I still don't have my phone.

Add to this the news of the privacy breaches and I think I'm out. I can firmly say, if that phone isn't here by this afternoon. Optus will get themselves a shiny new customer.

I decided approx 6mths ago to sign on for another contract, as all previous ones were as good as any other supplier offered. I was told by the person I was signing with, I can get back on my original plan once I signed up again. All I had to do was contact the call center & change back. {I had to sign on for a different plan to get a new phone}

After going through everything & signing on for another 24mths, I was told "sorry your old plan doesn't exsist anymore". I explained this was unexceptable & wanted out of the contract, I was then advised bad luck you have signed the contract {this would of sent my bill through the roof}. After about a week of trying to resolve through the Vodafone call center. I contacted the telephone ombudsman to get it resolved, Vodafone mysteriously found a way to put me back on my original cap, they claim does not exsist anymore!

They still find a way of stuffing my monthly budget by not billing one month, then twice the next. I'm definitley gone when my contract is up! This privacy issue is the icing on the cake.

Now this page you can freely share your thoughts of the company and blame what every telecommunication problem has.

All companies at one stage make mistakes by over charging customers, waiting calls and reception issues except for telstra(which you pay a fortune for). They all perform repairs and expansions, YOUR ON HOLD FOR ANY PHONE COMPANY for 20-30 minutes, i was on hold the other day for half an hour. The representatives are doing there jobs. There is always a high call volume,but they were kindly to help, i transfered one of my numbers and talked to them about my bill enquires, i've been a long term customer and too see people complain about reception and privacy issues is totally not entirely the companies fault.There is always scammers and leakes of all information completed illegally...eg wikileaks. The media has portrayed the story like any other story to make it even worst or enticing to sell papers and gain viewers.

Your on hold on the phone cause no one knows how to use a phone, in particular an iphone!

ITS VERY ENTERTAINING WATCHING A BIG COOPERATION FAIL!

easy steps such as switching you handset to 2G mode will help out with regards to making out goin calls. Reception isssues aren't always on the company.It can be your headset or the materials your housing is made of or if your in a rural area.

There is sometimes dirty people that will come to your door and sell you something or representatives on the phone. I got a F@#%ing call from telstra saying to move over there network they promisd me all this crap and i knew it was false. they said they were gonna weavier all my cost to move over and alter stated they'll give me 200 for the cancellation fees. It is not directly linked to the company.

THIS IS WHY YOU GO INTO STORES AND KNOW YOUR CALL RATES, COVERAGE, COST, etc.
and if you do have an issue i sure they'll be glad to help


DON'T get rolled

If you are struggling with reception issues im pretty sure vodafone are kindly to help if your patient enough. Nothing will happen with a click of a finger.

My friend at his house couldn't get vodafone reception or any other network other then telstra working there. The team at vodafone had launched a investigations an gave him a waiver to leave the company.

AND IT'S NOT THE BEST JOB TO BE IN A CALL CENTRE. people are very racist in there comments to the people that try to assist you.

NO ONE IN AUSTRALIA WANTS THESE JOBS!


Face the facts guys, your gettting a deal so what if your calls drop out once or twice a day.


your getting better value with the company.


IF YOU CAN'T MAKE CALLS AT ALL i'll definately be pissed of my self

most of you sound like do have an issue with the company and its understandably to be frustrated but who sold you the phone and why did you join in the first place?

are we all trying to get free phones and compensation
everyone has there own experience with a company.

Technology is growing and companies need to find a better way to check coverage that are more accurate and if not the customer should receive incentives that are reasonably they are will receive.

Well wouldn't you have it, there is no way Im going to call the not so helpdesk to request if my personal information has been leaked. So I decided to email via there website, and guess what, the email function is currently out of action!! MMM wonder why, could it be, no staff with the ability to answer that question, or a way of not having to deal with that issue with providing a reponse in writing, or lack of people who can provide a response in english. They have really started to ***** me off now!!!

repeated bad reception and now loss of all contactsand sim failure due to security breach,have been on phone for last 4hrs trying to get through to customer care.This is a private number but god help people with a buisness.

Last year i had to send the same handset off over 6 times in less than 12month for :repair" when i got it back each time it would FAIL in a new way so i would take it back. i was without a fphone for near a year. they then agreed to give me a free upgrade on a new contract when i got the new fone it wasnt compatible with the network so i sent it back but wasnt able to pick a new phone till they had gotten the old 1 back that i sent next day delivery 6weeks later they said they still hadnt got it yet, so i waited for the htc desier hd asked if it would be 100% compatible was told yes it would when i got it i found out it wasnt. During this time i was given bad service from rude customer care getting put on hold for up to 3 hours! never getting calls back and people who couldnt understand me. I have been with vodafone for 9yr this is the worst its ever been and i am concerned about my personal information i want out like yetsrerday!

So.... supposing my credit/personal identification information has been stolen/bought by some dubious Vodafail employee/lackey and whatever cretins they hang with; does knowing about the Vodafail security breach via the media and _not_ going out straight away to change all of my cards, phone numbers, etc make me liable for any misuse of my personal information (such as unwanted credit card transactions)?

Cos damn, that'd make me mad.

I previously posted about my phone and leg surgery and the fact that I could not, on occasion, receive or make calls. Which would be GREAT if I fell down the stairs on my crutches!
Now we can all enjoy the added stress of wondering if someone is wandering around using our personal details.
Right now, I'm on hold trying to find out how to contact Vodafone and cancel my contract early. Their email form is "temporarily out of order" and you can't leave a message to be called back on the 1555 number. It seems you can post a letter to PO BOX 2580, Kingston Delivery Centre, Kingston, TAS 7050.Right up there with the technology! I've turned into one of those old ladies who writes complaining letters, I'm a Vodacrone...

Credit card numbers have been stolen from the vodafone website?!?!!? Does anyone else think this company should be allowed to operate?

Hi, i went on a voda plan in 2008, i ended up paying out the contract in march 2010 because of poor coverage and constant drop out; plus the phone i got on contract broke and i labelled it just another dodgy voda product. but late last year i recieved a text saying (i kept my number and moved to a different provider) my bill had been sent to email but had bounced back so i should expect a bill in the mail and be aware of the $2 postage fee... i rang them and learned i actually had a credit, it took over 6 weeks to recive the credit back... but have just recieved another text stating i need to update my email address on the system and to expect another bill in the mail...
i havent been with them since march 2010 and my contract was due to expire in mnay/2010 anwnyway...
just another example of this corporate getting it wrong - good luck with the case.
i am a little concerned now that if they are still texting me then my contact details are still on their database, which we learned thru the media could be being onsold or stolen by fraudsters.. can anyone tell me how i can check this and have my details destroyed by voda?

(PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED - Vodafail.com Team)

PASSWORD RESETS and the PRIVACY ISSUE:

A short while back I was locked out of Vodafone. Had to phone the 'friggin' call centre and go on hold for hours (again).

They said they would reset my password, but SURPRISE SURPRISE my new password was now 6 digits not 4 as previously.

I'm convinced that Vodaphone changed the network to require 6 not 4 digit passwords and that caused me and thousands of others to be locked out.

I had done nothing to cause me to be locked out. Eg entering wrong passwords.

Why did they do this? After reading the news of the PRIVACY BREECH of Vodafone customer data it is not hard to put two and two together.

QUESTION: To those of you who also got locked out - Did your password change from 4 to 6 digits. If it did I think we need to start to collate evidence on this issue to add to the class action.

I have been on the phone to a friend this morning and during a 20 minute conversation, the phone dropped out three times. This happens on a regular basis! Also the 3g keeps disappearing and my internet connection is getting slower and slower. The free text to 1512 to check my account balance and the amount owing regularly comes back saying "this service is temporarily unavailable". I have had countless issues with logging on to the 'myvodafone' website. My password (the same one I have used for two years) suddenly stopped working, so I reset my password, this password worked for one day and then the next did not. This has happened regularly over the past month and Vodafone informs me that I have to re-register with myvodafone, which I have done 4 times in the past month and still no luck!! Every time my password does not work, I have to re-register again, the new password works for the first or second log-in then it fails the next time... and vodafone assures me each time that they have fixed the problem. My voicemail has failed to work on and off over the past year. I sometimes get my messages 3 days after they were left or not at all. Don't get me started on LARA!!! She gets me so worked up it is not funny..."Was that a yes or a no?" NO "sorry I didn't quite get that? Please say yes or no" NO "Sorry I didn't quite get that" - it drives me insane!!!! I have complained about Lara to Vodafone on numerous occasions. I am now concerned regarding this latest news of personal details being leaked. How do I sign up for the class action against Vodafone?

1.Account woes. VF not following instructions and doing 'their own thing. Ongoing: cannot use my handset as they have inadvertently, once again, terminated the service, despite clear instructions that did not include or mention "termination of existing" but ADDING a number/servive to my plan.My God! They are hopeless!
2. Cannot try as I may, through various methods to contact VF , get to speak with anyone. Calls are terminated whilst on hold. VF obviously cannot afford decent phone facilities to handle inbound.
3. Coverage and dropouts. Numerous call drop outs and absolutely pathetic download speed - just not worthwhile bothering to use internet - its so slow.
4.Privacy breach : not able to get details as to whether my details have been compromised as I have received spam mail with specific details perhaps linked to my VF account.

how is it that calls keep dropping out and not even connect when on 3g..
how is it that when your online it takes forever to load a web page..
how is it that they can let all of our files just go free on the net for anyone to see..all of our personal details our call records.

vodaphone. you just fail at life!!

f*&K me where do I start??? well I will point out the obvious first, their data is seriously so fucked up that dail up internet is faster then this bullshit!!! 2nd, their customer service all based in india and most of the time they dont know what they are talking about and dont give a shit about your problem because I am sure 100's and even 1000's per day call their fuckin call centre in Mumbai, India...
3rd, this recent issue with Vodafone in the news about some security breach, seriously WTF?
I am sure there is a shit load more issues, if I list all of them I am sure I will be typing all fuckin day! fuck I hate vodafone right now....
I am currently on hold at the moment YAY! I swear those fuckers owes me approx 40hrs of my time which I have spent on hold with those sons of bitches!!!

Twice I have called, this morning, to Vodaphone, with regard to my lack of internet account access. This has been a problem that has been ongoing for nearly a month now. The consultant had me re-register and the problem was solved. The main issue though, was on both calls, they gave me personal account details, without me giving them an initial pin, via voice or keypad, and I did not have to offer any password or details to verify who I was.
This was after I had advised the operator that this had occurred, on the first call, and he said it would be escalated and fixed! Scary stuff, considering the account is also in my wife's name!!!

I spent most of yesterday on the phone to customer service only to be told my details were stored in a secure area and the passwords are now changed every 24 hours meaning it was impossible for anyone to now gain access to my personal details on file. (which include my credit card number, address, phone number car rego and so on)

My big issue is:

Everyone at Vodafone is telling me that the problem is "fixed" and my information is "now" secure.

Well it obviously was NOT secure beforehand, which is a damn big breach of the Privacy Policy which states my rights on the contract I signed. Meaning they have broken their end of the contract. However after numerous attempts to explain this to the foreign customer call operators I have been told that I am not entitled to be let out of the contract. (A contract which has been broken by its own operators)

This isn't my only problem though.

Not long ago my credit card details were stolen and used on online gambling websites across the globe. Now I use my credit card to pay for everyday expenses such as petrol, food and the occasional movie or product from Kmart. The thing is though, none of these places actually store my credit card number or details. They simply accept and process the payment.

I also used my credit card to make payments to Vodafone most months for my bill. For some time I was set up on automatic payment for the bill also. Meaning my credit card details were stored with Vodafone. Since I am still a customer, that means somewhere my credit card details are still stored on their system. I cannot think of any other place my details would be stored other than their system.

Process of elimination points the leaked credit card details straight at Vodafone.

I explained to the Customer Care operator this morning that I have bank statements showing unauthorised transactions, I also had my bank investigate the case who confirmed the credit card had been breached. I also explained that Vodafone is the only company who stores my credit card number.

All I want it my contract terminated and my details erased from their system; weather or not it is now secured.

My home sits smack in the middle of a major Perth suburb. Vodafone's coverage map shows my area is covered by 2G/3G service. I cannot make or receive calls from inside my home or front the front or back yards. Totally unacceptable coverage. I am one year into a 2 year service agreement. The reported security breach regarding customer details just adds insult to injury. Surely Vodafone are in breach of the Trade Practices Act? They certainly appear to have breached their own privacy policy. My legal advice is that I can unilaterally cancel my contract because they are in breach of same. Has anyone else pursued this line of attack?

***********PRIVACY WARNING**********

Without releasing the personals details of others I have been waiting for the right opportunity to expose a certain event I have experienced on the Vodafone Network. Yes I have all the regular problems, drop outs, poor reception even in prime locations, connection delays and so on. But the most concerning of all issues was my recent experience with voicemail. I have been on multiple occasions listening to my voicemail box to retrieve my messages and the most absurd thing happened. I began to hear messages which had nothing to do with me, in fact after listening for a while I discovered I was somehow patched into Vodafones message server and I was being streamed message after message which belonged to almost anyone and everyone. I was able to record details of individuals, their personal lifes, contacts and who they were talking to. Everything from the average joe to local politicians. After this occurred I began to freak out, what if others can hear my messages, what if this error has occurred before. While I waited sometime thinking to myself what to do about this it happened again. Another call to voicemail and instead of my messages endless playback of message after message belonging to everyone else. This only stopped when I decided to hang up and no input controls such as delete or skip message would work.

VERY VERY VERY SCARY.

There are more instalments to this saga, including vodafone's denial and ignorant responses, unfortunately at this stage I will have to post that later.
Also want to point out, vodafone have poorly managed their merger with the three network, their reception is extremely bad when compared to both Optus and Telstra, internet service is very poor both speed and reception wise. DO NOT USE VODAFONE.

***********PRIVACY WARNING**********

Vodafone cut off my phone and gave my number to someone else in September. Someone at a senior level went into my account, cut off my number (ie disabled my account) and gave my number to a customer they were signing up. It took DAYS on hold - one day I was on hold for SIX hours to get through to some operator in India who then handballed me to various departments, and no one could help me. I couldn't call from my Vodafone - they'd cut my service. So had to tie up (And pay for) my landline to contact them about the mess they'd created.
Eventually I went into the local Vodafone shop - three days in a row - to use their phone. They were very helpful and they USED THEIR OWN PHONES AND PHONE CREDIT to get my number back.

I got my number back. They Vodafone billed me $460 for service cancellation!

I got the disconnection/contract cancellation charge reversed and I was told, as compensation, that I would get the following month free. The bill came in for that 'free' month at $463.00! I'm on a $29 cap!
I called again - only two hours on hold this time. I was told that the person who had authorised the month's free credit had left the company and left no notes. I pointed out that had been billed incorrectly ($7 to retrieve voicemail? Hello?) and after a few more hours on hold came back with an offer of $463 phone credit - but not get my money refunded nor would they agree to release me from my contract (I was over it by this stage) .
I agreed to the credit - about 15months worth.
The next day they debited $29 from my account - my monthly charge.
Added to this was an overseas trip when my roaming failed. I was unable to receive calls, conduct business or receive necessary text messages to do banking/book flights etc.

Vodafone has since agreed to refund ALL the money they've incorrectly taken from me - $463 plus $29 =$492. They said they could do this in 10 working days, which, after negotiation, I got down to five. The money hasn't come through yet - stay tuned. I asked again to be released from my contract but they refused.
I have yet to discuss with Vodafone compensation for distress, loss of income (I run my own business and spent days away from it at a crucial time trying to get my phone number back - which by the way was on all my business materials). The people on the front line - the ONLY human beings I was able to talk to face to face were at the retail outlet and did what they could to help... - what about their distress? I wasn't the first customer to come in with a service complaint.
If I could get out of my contract I would, and I if there's a class action happening, I'm in: (PERSONAL DETAILS REMOVED - Vodafail.com Team).

Jinny, NT

This is a ridiculous situation in Australia where to merely do the simple task of accessing a telecommunication system we have to provide all of our personal details including phone numbers, drivers licence, address , DOB etc etc, - all the info that criminals need to assume our identity, and we are asked to take this huge risk just to access the Bl**dy phone system!! what a joke!

Also the lengthy credit checks required to sign up for some poxy monthly plan which just rips money out of our pocket! They should be signing a contract with us not us signing a one way contractual arrangement with them.

Reception dropping out, calls dropping out, no reception, calls not connecting, SMS & MMS delayed massively - 3 DAYS! Seriously Vodafone what is the problem? I have a new credit card number, so what did I do - register it with VF to direct debit my Internet Bill and to have it for my prepaid account, just like the old card. Now, I get a nasty bill saying that I haven't paid my Internet for two months! Enough is enough. I'm getting out of Vodafone.

well..when i can actually get a signal, or the line doesnt drop out the service is good. lol! as for access to browsing..well that's a total joke. Hardly Ever happens

Now the latest is the privacy breach. I just saw the CEO on the news. Clearly he is someone with no authoriy and in whom none of us can trust or rely on. Where did they dig him up from? Business failure school?

I sympathise with everyone out their who wants to break their contracts or keep their handsets as compensation. Remember though, Vodaphone has the power because they have your credit card details and we have all signed a contract.

I say we all support the class action against the company which os ripping us off and cant protect our privacy.

The CEO is a disgusting idiot: he was blaming it on an employee as if this wasn't the company's responsibility.

Well we should shw them what corporate liability means

I wonder of the attention seeking minister for communications and broadband is paying any attention to this fiasco with Vodafail. Here is his chance to stop posturing about the NBN and putting out press releases about something that may or may not eventuate in our lifetime and tackle an issue that will have an immediate effect on a large number of people. He could tackle the gross failure to provide the contracted services from Vodafail and their continuing efforts to extort money from new unsuspecting suckers.

He could at the same time look to introduce privacy legislation with teeth that forces corporations to contact customers when breaches have occurred. Legislation that has been enacted in the USA.

Perhaps the lobbyists have already been engaged by the big corporations to try to downplay the cost to individuals of loss of personal information.

I find it strange that if public servants access personal medical or tax information held by the government - they can be prosecuted and lose their jobs - yet the breach of the similar personal information held by corporations is a different matter.

Reading reports online about how Vodaphone has breached its privacy policy with the access of customer personal and financial details outside of authorised personnel. As a Three mobile customer (using Vodafone network) I contacted both Three and Vodafone. Both state that Three accounts and Vodafone accounts are different (although reports on whirlpool suggest it is planned to merge them in future). Does this mean Three mobile customers are unaffected?

Just joined September last year and thought could bare the bad service but with today's privacy breach, this is the last straw for me.
I am glad a website has been set up and i am going ahead to loge complaint and action against Vodafone.

I can't believe I am reading the security breach news. My first reaction was "... you've got to be kidding me ...".

I will simply not complain.

Can anyone who is knowledgeable please explain what symptoms shall we seek to figure out if a personal account has been broke into?

If I realise that my account has been breached, I will simply demand cease of contract with reimbursement of any monetary damage.
Moreover, I will simply NOT RETURN THE MOBILE DEVICE as a measure of punishment...

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!...

I just called on 1555 (4th time they answered after average wait of 25 minutes), I asked them about security breach just happened on the website. I was talking to one of their representative, In his words:
"IGNORE THE NEWS"
"THE NEWSPAPERS SAYING GOOD AS WELL AS BAD THINGS"
"YOUR DATA IS SAFE"
"NO ONE CAN ACCESS THE DATA"

Why did I have to find oyt about the release of personal information from a news site and not them.
The release of this information is a potential financial disaster for customers.
I quickly logged into Vodafone to send an email asking if my information was released and to cancel any authorities.
Their email contact form is temporarily out of order!!!!
What a joke

I, too, have received msgs days afte they were sent and have missed out on an earlier important appointment with a medical specialist. I was furious as I had waited for months to see this specialist and then a cancellation came through and I could have been able to see him so much sooner had Vodaphone not failed me!

Also, I have been with Vodafone for about 15 years and renewed a 24-month contract in March 2010 which allowed me to have a Blackberry Short II. I went into the shop planning on selecting an iPhone but the staff member talked me out of it instead to take the Blackberry. Long story short, I was told all the bugs of the first Storm had been fixed - I discovered that was clearly not the case. I complained many times and was, some weeks, back in the shopfront every day with an new issue, sometimes it froze other times it would select one of my contacts and called them or send a blank text msg. They assured me it could be fixed with an update so it was sent away for 4.5 weeks and would not provide a temporary phone despite the phone being a dud. When I requested a new phone and to change from the Blackberry and all its problems, it was flatly denied. I protested my loyalty to the company to no avail and in the end I agreed to purchase an iPhone on a payment plan because I needed a working phone immediately so that now I am in effect paying for 2 phones as we all know there is no such thing as a free phone!

I am mortified that my private personal details may have been sold on to heaven knows who, Vodafone you MUST address this issue immediately and properly. Tell us whose details have been sold - WE NEED TO KNOW NOW.

Changing all your system passwords now is like closing the gate after the horse has bolted isn't it?????

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO FOR US?????

In regards to the data breach, my understanding (and I could well be wrong) is that it's the employee logons at the stores that somehow got breached. Because the Vodafone internal portal can be accessed from any computer, anyone with those usernames and passwords could login and view customer information. However this would always have been the case the way the stores link to Vodafones system, because not all stores are Vodafone stores (some are franchised) yet still access the same system.

Either way this communication SHOULD have been done over secure SSL with short expiry certificate based authentication, or via a private VPN.

""Customer information is stored on Vodafone's internal systems and accessed through a secure web portal, accessible to authorised employees and dealers via a secure login and password.

"Any unauthorised access to the portal will be taken very seriously, and would constitute a breach of employment or dealer agreement and possibly a criminal offence.''

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/vodafone-mobile-records-leaked-onto-the-internet/story-e6frfm1i-1225984462550#ixzz1AVvncMD8"

As for other things. I'm 10 minutes from Blacktown in Sydneys West and my reception is bloody hopeless. I've been with Vodafone for 14 years, and mid this year my contract expires. If something isn't fixed come my contract expiry I'll be considering other options. There's only so much a loyal customer can take before they no longer have an option but to look elsewhere.

to my disgust I just stumbled across this link: http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/8193871/vodafone-mobile-records-leaked

It reads:
"Vodafone is investigating an alleged security breach but denies customers' personal details are publicly available on the internet.

The mobile phone company has reset all passwords for its web portal, used by employees and dealers.

Details including names, home addresses, driver's licence numbers and credit card details have been available on the web in what has been described as an "unbelievable" lapse in security, Fairfax newspapers reported.

The report said criminal groups have paid for the private details of some Vodafone customers to blackmail them and other people have obtained logins to check their spouse's communications.

It said the full extent of the privacy breach is unknown but it is possible that thousands of people have logins that can be passed around and used to gain access to the accounts of about four million Vodafone clients.

A Vodafone spokesman said the company was concerned to hear of the alleged breach.

"Vodafone's customer details are not 'publicly available on the internet'," he said in a statement on Sunday.

Customer information is stored on Vodafone's internal systems and accessed through a secure web portal, accessible to authorised employees and dealers via a secure login and password.

"Any unauthorised access to the portal will be taken very seriously, and would constitute a breach of employment or dealer agreement and possibly a criminal offence."

The company would investigate the allegations and refer the matter to the Australian Federal Police if appropriate, the statement said.

The spokesman added that all passwords had been reset and a review is being undertaken of the training and systems procedures.

Michael Fraser, head of the Australian Communications Law Centre at the University of Technology, Sydney, told Fairfax it seemed to be a major breach of the company's privacy obligations and "unbelievably slack security".

NOT ENOUGH TO SCREW US OVER BUT NOW RELEASING OUR PRIVATE DETAILS, WELL DONE VODAFAIL

Just received a call back to my mobile after waiting 1hr for return call. Asked if I was paying for call, YES. Please call my landline, very sorry sir that number is not working, tries again, sorry sir still no dial tone etc. Please call my mobile then. Ring, Vodafone here, what is your concern? No internet coverage, no phone service, calls drop out, security breach?, Sorry sir that is a rumour, okay so can you explain my coverage issues? We need to check the setup of your Apple Iphone, tries landline again and it mysteriously works now :-( I explain that I have to use 2g to get any coverage for phone calls and it still drops out. Cannot connect to the internet, when I do it is that slow that sites/pages drop out. ABSOLUTELY PATHETIC. Well sir all we can do today is escalate this problem to check your area (home), what about where ever else this happens? should I call every time? I dont think so. I ask again re security breach and get transferred to customer care? haha wait time is 40+mins and no option of call back. Service? is ridiculous and after previous issues with Vodafail I should never have signed with them again. There certainly wont be a third time. Tried to send email via Vodafail's website and guess what? sorry to inform you that page is offline. No service, no customer care and no coverage, what the hell do they think we are paying for?

I have internet and phone plans with Vodaphone which constantly drops out. I was recently hounded for $312 which I had paid via their website 2-3 weeks prior to the hounding commencing. It makes me wonder how much I have been ripped off by Vodafone by paying my bill via the website (I am yet to investigate the past 4-5 months).

The icing on the cake is the recent security breaches that I have started seeking other providers, however believe that we will be slugged with full exit fees even though Vodafone's service is no longer of standard.

this privacy breach....
it explains why i was receiving up to 5 calls a day from a dubai number who wanted to 'be my friend'.
wanting to know how the fuck they got my number. called day in day out for weeks it was only until my husband threatened to hunt them down that they stopped calling.

i researched the number on the internet and it is people trying to scam money and stealing phone numbers from such breaches like this.

going into the vodafone store tomorrow cause we all know if i call LARA will tell me as per usual its a 50 minute wait to speak to someone who doesnt even understand in fucken INDIA!!! hoping they will null and void my contract because of this major major fuck up.

hello optus...done telstra and now i have definitely done with vodafail.