Micro Bill Systems, also known as MicroBillSys, MBS and Platte Media, is an online collection service with offices in Leeds, England,[1] considered to be malware.[2] The company states that it is a professional billing company offering "software management solutions that can aid your business in reducing uncollectable payments."[3]
The company's best-known clients are online gambling and pornography sites offering three-day free trials of their subscription-based services.[2][4]
If users do not cancel during the trial period, the MBS software begins a repeating cycle of full-screen pop-up windows warning users that their account is overdue and demanding payment.
The eleven-page MBS end-user license agreement contains a clause stating that unless the bill is paid, the software will disrupt computer use longer each day,[5] with up to four daily periods of 10 minutes when the pop-up payment demand is locked and cannot be closed or minimized.[2]
Users have complained about the unexpected bills, feel victimized, and deny ever accessing the video sites they are being billed for.[2]
MBS denies installing its software by stealthy means and says that the software is downloaded by consent.[2]
Many consumers are unaware that they have agreed to the download.[6]
Security software company Symantec describes MicroBillSys as a potentially unwanted application that uses aggressive billing and collection techniques to demand payment after a three-day trial period, and says that there are reports of these techniques leaving the computer unable to browse the Internet.[7]
^Arthur, Charles (2008-03-27). "What MBS did after popups for porn: films.. with popup bills". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
^ abcdePollitt, Michael (March 1, 2007). "My PC is being held to ransom". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
^Cite error: The named reference MBSsite was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Schofield, Jack (February 15, 2007). "Billing attack from MBS?". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
^Cite error: The named reference InfoWorld was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference OFT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Symantec, MicroBillSys
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