Skype blocked my business account | Hacker News Reader

Skype blocked my business account

8 pointspozzy7 comments

I made the (poor) decision of choosing Skype as my phone number and VOIP provider for my business.

About a month ago I saw a strange charge on my credit card statement from Skype that did not appear on my account purchase history. After notifying Skype of the issue, they proceeded to block my account for unauthorized access.

For more than a week, I have not been receiving phone calls on my publicly listed number. Skype has not worked with me to resolve the issue. They have asked me to fill out a verification form 3 times and each time they have told me that I have left out some crucial information. I have provided them with absolutely everything I have knowledge of. This procedure should not even be necessary since there is no evidence of unauthorized access to my account. The charge does not even appear on my Skype account - only on my credit card statement. It is likely a billing issue.

This post is meant as a word of warning to anyone who was considering using Skype for their business. Stay far away.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a better VOIP service than can provide me with a number and unlimited calls in the US/CA?

> They have asked me to fill out a verification form 3 times and each time they have told me that I have left out some crucial information.

I got stuck in this exactly hole(!). One day out of the blue Skype locked out my account, I contacted them from the registered email address. They told me to fill out the verification form, which I did, several times. I then asked them what the problem was (again from the registered email) and they said that they couldn't discuss it until I verify and I couldn't verify without more information...

So one day I just got fed up and sat there filling out the form over and over again. It finally worked when I selected a different payment method.

I just got lucky. Their CS told me to "make a new Skype account" (losing over $10 in credit, and a Skype number subscription in the process). Since they weren't able to willing to help me simply because I was answering just one of the questions on their silly form "wrong."

Vonage served me very well for many years. I cancelled my service from them a couple of years ago, but purely because my circumstances changed.

The were rock solid, courteous, and professional from start to finish.

Google Voice? I've had nothing but great luck with them.

I believe I tried them first, but they did not have the area code I wanted. I will check again!

Also check out Twilio (http://www.twilio.com).

We use Twilio and OpenVBX for our phone solution. It works good plus let's us automate a bunch of things, including text messages and calls etc.

I'm curious - why does the area code matter?

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