Web sites that could cause phone bills to skyrocket.

People who have visited certain sites, mainly adult Web sites, have found themselves being charged for a service they initially thought was free.

Bermuda Telephone Company, Cable and Wireless and TeleBermuda have received several calls from customers who claimed they were being billed for long distance calls they did not make.

However, BTC spokeswoman Charmaine Burgess said her company was only responsible for the local side of phone calls and noted that BTC provided access for international calling to the long distance carriers.

Customers were being scammed when they visited certain adult Web sites and were promised they could view adult images for free.

They were told that in order to view certain images, they must download a special image viewer.

But the Web sites, which are located overseas, disconnected the users' modem and dialled an international phone number establishing a long distance call that was charged to the users' phone bill.

"The software turns the modem volume off,'' said Craig Ferguson, marketing manager for Logic. "It's very malicious by the Web sites and people are too quick to click the `I agree' button.'' Mr. Ferguson noted the reason the costs were so high was because the Web sites were registered in far away countries such as Sierra Leone.

He added that once the Internet user made initial contact, even after they had left the site, the costs would continue to mount.

"They can't be touched in those countries,'' Mr. Ferguson said. "You see what's happening in Sierra Leone? "The last thing on their mind is Internet scams. Even if the user visits the site for a couple of minutes, when they continue to surf, they are still being charged. Some of the costs are nearly $10 a minute for a phone call. That's what racks up the big bucks.'' Mr. Ferguson said it was important for Internet users to read the small print or the disclaimer notices that appeared on the Web sites.

He noted that it could be a potentially serious problem to Internet users if they were not properly educated about scamming Web sites.

"I don't know the exact number of people who have been affected,'' he said, "but everyone is concerned.

"It can be a sensitive issue and we are trying to figure out a way to cut this off. We need to educate the market and get people to realise that going into these sites can cost them money.'' Cable and Wireless spokesman Edgar Dill said the situation "came to light'' when customers questioned the international calls on their phone bill.

"One or two of our customers came in challenging their bill,'' he said.

"All our records showed that they did indeed make the phone calls.'' Jim Ivey, manager for marketing and sales at TeleBermuda, also had to deal with irate customers who cried foul over their long distance phone bills.

"We have received complaints and calls from customers flat out claiming they did not make the calls,'' he said.

"But there are specific trackers of data and we will track the number where the call came from. The data is like the bank, it doesn't record incorrect data, it's faultless. Computers are great devices, but if there are multiple users in a family, it's hard to say who's on what.'' Mr. Ivey urged that caution was the most important tool when using the Internet and noted that it was an added cost on long distance carriers who have to foot the bill for unaccounted calls.

"We encourage people who use Internet services to be cautious,'' he said.

"Someone can be surfing the Web and their curiosity goes up when they see something advertised for free and some folks have been duped.

"If the area outside the normal Web is told it is free, then be cautious.

Read the fine print.''