10 ms·

I’ve done something similar in Germany, ended up getting a bill after 6 months of missed payments and a nice letter from a lawyer.

michaelmcdonald 4y ago
How did they get your contact information?
- hatware 4y ago
  You think Germans have privacy?
UIUC_06 4y ago
Echoing the other responder: if you use a VPN, and don't give your real name & address, how are they going to find you?
- infogulch 4y ago
  If privacy.com gets a subpoena from a court, do you think they would just ignore it, or would they dutifully hand over any details of whoever owned that credit card?
- brnt 4y ago
  That is illegal and depending on the type of service not possible. A delivered and received email constitutes due notice in many European countries (perhaps not all, not sure), which is likely to reach you. But if it is possible, I guess they couldn't, unless they are very determined and manage to force your VPN or CC issuer to disclose.
  - UIUC_06 4y ago
    Proton VPN is based in Switzerland, so good luck with that.
    - cinntaile 4y ago
      That doesn't really mean much. You're better off having a VPN in an "enemy" state if you don't want them to give out your info.
- makeitdouble 4y ago
  To note, in EU most sites will have strong verification of your credit cards (at least since last year) Looking at their site, privacy.com doesn't seem to handle 3DSecure or any other DSP2 level of authentication. Has anyone recently succeeded making payments with that in the EU ? Of course if you give your actual credit card number/CVV etc. but with a fake name it will get refused by your issuer.
brnt 4y ago
Yes. Apparently this works differently in the US, but in any European country the ability to deduct currency is not governing the existence of an obligation of payment. That is determined by the (implicit) contract you agree to when subscribing to the service/product.
- JumpCrisscross 4y ago
  > this works differently in the US No, it’s the same here. If you signed up with fake credentials with the intention of breaching the contract, it could be fraud.
  - UIUC_06 4y ago
    I'm waiting to see someone get prosecuted for this "fraud": Q: So, Mr. Defendant, when you signed up for this service, did you intend to pay? A: Yes Q: And did you pay? A: Yes Q: But eventually you cancelled the credit card? A: Yes Q: And why did you do that? A: I was tired of the service, and they made it almost impossible to cancel. At that point, the prosecution drops the case. But hey, if you want to keep paying for a shitty service you don't want anymore because you can't jump through all their hoops... well, you do you.
    - brnt 4y ago
      At least in Europe, these sorts of dark patterns are very much illegal and I've never seen them in the wild (from Europe based businesses).
      - morelisp 4y ago
        Prior to this year, German consumer contracts were even worse than American ones. Three years was the normal, with three month notice periods, limited cancellation windows, no prorated refunds, and just as many dark patterns.
        brnt 4y ago

michaelmcdonald 4y ago

How did they get your contact information?

hatware 4y ago
You think Germans have privacy?

UIUC_06 4y ago

Echoing the other responder: if you use a VPN, and don't give your real name & address, how are they going to find you?

infogulch 4y ago
If privacy.com gets a subpoena from a court, do you think they would just ignore it, or would they dutifully hand over any details of whoever owned that credit card?
brnt 4y ago
That is illegal and depending on the type of service not possible. A delivered and received email constitutes due notice in many European countries (perhaps not all, not sure), which is likely to reach you. But if it is possible, I guess they couldn't, unless they are very determined and manage to force your VPN or CC issuer to disclose.
- UIUC_06 4y ago
  Proton VPN is based in Switzerland, so good luck with that.
  - cinntaile 4y ago
    That doesn't really mean much. You're better off having a VPN in an "enemy" state if you don't want them to give out your info.
makeitdouble 4y ago
To note, in EU most sites will have strong verification of your credit cards (at least since last year) Looking at their site, privacy.com doesn't seem to handle 3DSecure or any other DSP2 level of authentication. Has anyone recently succeeded making payments with that in the EU ? Of course if you give your actual credit card number/CVV etc. but with a fake name it will get refused by your issuer.

brnt 4y ago

Yes. Apparently this works differently in the US, but in any European country the ability to deduct currency is not governing the existence of an obligation of payment. That is determined by the (implicit) contract you agree to when subscribing to the service/product.

JumpCrisscross 4y ago
> this works differently in the US No, it’s the same here. If you signed up with fake credentials with the intention of breaching the contract, it could be fraud.
- UIUC_06 4y ago
  I'm waiting to see someone get prosecuted for this "fraud": Q: So, Mr. Defendant, when you signed up for this service, did you intend to pay? A: Yes Q: And did you pay? A: Yes Q: But eventually you cancelled the credit card? A: Yes Q: And why did you do that? A: I was tired of the service, and they made it almost impossible to cancel. At that point, the prosecution drops the case. But hey, if you want to keep paying for a shitty service you don't want anymore because you can't jump through all their hoops... well, you do you.
  - brnt 4y ago
    At least in Europe, these sorts of dark patterns are very much illegal and I've never seen them in the wild (from Europe based businesses).
    - morelisp 4y ago
      Prior to this year, German consumer contracts were even worse than American ones. Three years was the normal, with three month notice periods, limited cancellation windows, no prorated refunds, and just as many dark patterns.
      - brnt 4y ago