Swisscom goes address book fraud

@JoelV

Well, the localsearch press spokesman has apparently already stated to the Observer (article linked in the original post) that it was not a mistake but was done deliberately.

Consequently, it is pretty much the same as what is commonly known as the address book fraud 😉

It should be clear that such practices have no place in any serious company.

Incidentally, I posted the article in the “Exchange of Experiences” section because it is of course not something that could be “solved” by any employee or other participant here in the forum.

The “solution” that would still be conceivable here would have to be prescribed by the federal government. DETEC department come, in the form of personnel consequences at the highest level… But Ms. Sommaruga already has to take care of the successor to the SBB boss. (And in my opinion also the board president of the SBB… because after she recently admitted in a newspaper interview that she was not able to buy a train ticket at the machine, she will probably be given an official guardianship rather than a board position in the future have to… but I digress ;-))

As the Kassenrutsch reported this week, the Swisscom subsidiary has apparently not stopped its dubious machinations since my article from 2019 but has continued cheerfully:

[https://www.srf.ch/versanden/kassenjagd-espresso/kassenjagd/swisscom-directories-unterschriftungen-in-neue-vertraege-kopiert](https://www.srf.ch/versanden/kassenjagd-espresso/ kassenrutsch/swisscom-directories-signatures-copied-into-new-contracts)

Even forging documents now seems to be part of the standard repertoire.

It’s also funny how the management tries to excuse themselves by saying that these are “isolated cases” and “black sheep”. Nobody believes that a company that sends out fake letters with the title “Payment Reminder” and then claims that they were only meant as “offers” is not systematically controlled from the very top.

Incidentally, the article about Kassenrutsch mentions that localsearch employees receive a lousy basic wage, which they then have to top up with commissions.

In other words, exactly what I have already suspected here on various occasions regarding the employees of the Swisscom shops, since, according to my diverse experiences, they also have a strong tendency to tell customers complete nonsense in order to be able to sell them new devices unnecessarily.

Maybe someone here would like to comment on whether I am correct about the commission model in the Swisscom shops. (Yeah, naive, I know.)

Oh, by the way, I can also report from my own experience: another Localsearch saleswoman called us recently. When I told her that we weren’t interested because our customers wouldn’t search for us via the online or offline address book, she said that the entries in localsearch were also important in order to appear higher on Google… for some people will probably believe that.
She then “strangely” didn’t want to delve into the topic any further when she realized that I wasn’t falling for this scam.

@Werner

Indeed.

I am still of the opinion that especially a company that is 51% owned by the Swiss Confederation should dedicate itself to “public service” and serious advice rather than “hard selling” and cheating customers.

And it certainly shouldn’t operate systematically “beyond the limits of legality.”

Of course, no company should do the latter. But certainly not our “half” state-owned company, which still enjoys a very high level of trust among the population (although it’s not entirely clear to me why).

One also wonders whether the majority shareholder is fulfilling his supervisory obligation here 😉

For shooting: localsearch aka Swisscom Directories AG, probably the largest operator of address book fraud in Switzerland (as has been well documented by consumer protection for years), warns its “valued customers” about… address book fraud!

They even refer to the cash register collapse in order to blacken the other address book fraud “YELO” (certainly justifiably). Particularly humorous when you consider that just a few months ago the Kassenrutsch also reported on localsearch’s scams.

Maybe the air in the crook business is slowly getting thinner when the actors are already destroying each other 🤣

@Wonomiesch33

Do I find something funny?

That numerous companies (including Swisscom/localsearch) engage in address book fraud?

I don’t find that funny at all.

However, there is definitely a certain humor factor when, as here, one fraudster warns about the other fraudster.

Localsearch (Swisscom subsidiary) is once again in the media because of its “suspected” fraudulent activities:

[https://www.20min.ch/story/localsearch-unter-faelschungsverdacht-kybun-chef-ertreib-vorwuerfe-103214375](https://www.20min.ch/story/localsearch-unter-faelschungsverdacht-kybun- boss-raises-accusations-103214375)

This time you wanted to foist fake contracts on former Mister Switzerland Claudio Minder’s company. At least that’s what this one says. And due to the well-known deceptions of “Swisscom Directories AG”, there is little doubt in my mind that these allegations are again absolutely correct.