Within the past week, I had decided to to check out Virgin Mobile's Broadband2Go wireless internet service and discovered, this is more scam than legit. First off...the intial packaging the USB device comes in, states "Unlimited 3G Internet Just $40/Month". Sounds good. At least on the packaging. Hook up was very easy as well as the connection. But once connected to the site, it's a whole different story.

The Unlimited $40/Month package does not exist. Instead, it now becomes a Unlimited $50/Month package (Does this seem like a Bait and Switch Scam?) with two other cheaper packages to choose from. A $10/Weekly package and a $20/Monthly package that offers so much megabites for the entire month--and of which, can be gone through within a matter of a couple of days (depending on how much one uses the Internet). Budget wise, neither one of the latter two, stated packages, are the least bit practical. The Unlimited usage package, would be the more practical choice of the three money wise. That is, if one can actually get the service.

I myself, chose to try, at first, the $20/Monthly package (Which by the way, is proclaimed by Virgin Mobile, as a Wal-Mart Special) just out of curiousity and because I had a $40 Top-Up Card which needed to be used. So I applied that card to the Broadband Service and registered my Bank Credit/Debit card for the purpose of later use when I wanted to upgrade the plan for Unlimited usage.

Not only did I find the $20/Month package worthless. But I also discovered the connection, to be just as slow--if not slower than the old Dial-Up Service back in the day. And many times, the connection, would quite suddenly be dropped and I would have to go through the motions to reconnect.

But not one to give up so easy and lick my wounds, I decided to upgrade the package to the $50/Month Plan--just to see if it would be any better. Only now, when I use my Bank Credit/Debit Card to make the upgrade, I instead, receive a glaring message that there is a problem with my card and to double check the information I had given when registering the card to see if it is correct. Which I did...and it was correct. I then contacted my bank to check with them if there was a problem with my card and whether or not, I just might be over my limit. My Bank told me that I wasn't. I also found out, that Virgin Mobile had in fact, been issued the funds of $50 plus, much to my surprise, charging an extra $4 to my account as well.

Once finding that my Bank Card had in fact been charged, I immediately called the 877 number and spoke with a Virgin Mobile Boadband2Go Customer Representative and told her the problem at hand. She was very cordial and sympathetic as well as apologetic--but denied, that my card had been charged by Virgin Mobile. She admitted, that they do have my Bank Credit/Debit Cad on file, but it was not charged for any amount only to follow with a statement, that my Bank was mistaken--A total of $54 was never charged by Virgin Mobile. And yet, I had been able to download the bank statements, which clearly shows the charges made by Virgin Mobile on Sunday, May 29, 20011 at 10:19 PM PST. Plus the extra $4 from the hours of 10:27 PM to 11:00PM PST.

Is there fraud involved? I honestly suspect there is. The Virgin Mobile Customer Rep., never did offer to check into the problem as to where the $54 had gone too. Yet she did deny my request to do so--Since, as she kept saying, Virgin Mobile, never deducted the funds from my card.

And yet, my current bank statement, says otherwise. So perhaps, there should be some sort of investigation, handled by the State Attorney General's Office, leaning towards the alleged business practices of Virgin Mobile.

Something needs to be done--Now my next door neighbor is on the phone with a Virgin Mobile Rep.. It seems, that 310 minutes of just purchased cell phone time, mysteriously vanished.

Will it never end?