AT&T Settles Cell Phone Scam Suit

(CBS/AP) AT&T Mobility, the nation's largest cell phone carrier, has agreed to pay thousands of Florida consumers who were billed for third-party services such as ringtones and text messaging that were advertised as free.

The settlement announced Friday between Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and AT&T Mobility could result in refunds of more than $10 million in all, depending on how many consumers seek compensation.

McCollum said the main culprits are third-party companies that advertise ringtones and other services on the Internet, often promising that the service will be free. When customers - often teenagers - sign up, they or their parents are then surprised to find charges on their wireless bill.

"They will download this thinking it's free because the advertising on the Internet says it's free," McCollum said. And when the charge shows up on the bill, it's not always clear what it is, either, he added.

"This advertising is wrong, it's deceptive ... and it's all over the Internet," he said.

Last week, CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reported that replying to a text message or even browsing a Web site can unleash a flury of phone-bill charges for unordered and unwanted services.

It's called "cramming" - charges for services you didn't order and don't want that can be next to impossible to stop. Last year, the FCC ordered millions of dollars returned to angry cell phone customers who said they were scammed, Attkisson reported.

AT&T Mobility has agreed in the settlement to police such agreements with third-party providers and make it clear what the charges are for.

"It's going to say 'ringtones,' and it's going to give them an opportunity to cancel," McCollum said.

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