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Friday, December 15th, 2023 8:36 PM

Closed

Xfinity Assistant scam

This afternoon I received a text message from “Xfinity Assistant” stating the following:

“Hi, it's Xfinity Assistant. You now have faster upload speeds, but it looks like a technician will need to make your home at (my address removed) compatible to receive them. Schedule a free appointment to unlock faster upload speeds.

 

1-Yes, let's schedule

2-No, not right now

 

Text help or stop

Msg&DataRatesMayApply”

 

My initial reaction was that this was some kind of text message scam, so I decided to contact Comcast Xfinity to inquire about the message.  I signed into the website and used the chat option, and after some frustration, eventually got to a live agent.  I stated that I had received the text copied above and was inquiring about its legitimacy.  The agent stated that yes, I did qualify for an internet upgrade from 400mps to 800mps at no charge, and asked if he could text me a link to acknowledge the agreement.  I said yes, and received the link via text and clicked it.  It sent me to the Xfinity website, but there was no action on the page to accept an agreement.  At this point I decided to call Xfinity instead, reached an agent and was told there was no such promotion available to me for free.  I walked her thru the events stated above, asking why did I receive an unsolicited text stating faster speeds, and was then subsequently told by the chat agent that I did qualify?  The agent said, “let me put you on hold and look into this.”  When she returned, she said, yes, I did qualify, but it was 1-penny more than what I was currently paying.  I said OK, let’s do it.  The agent sent a text link to my mobile phone, and this time it did take me to an agreement.  However, as I reviewed the details of the agreement, which included my current charges, and the new charges, the difference was around $4.00 higher, rather than the 1-cent she indicated it would be.  At this point, I said no thanks.

Comcast Xfinity initiated the series of events, beginning with a text message, falsely stating that I would need some kind of appointment to benefit and subsequently wasted my time regarding a free promotion (stated by the first live chat agent) that wasn’t free at all.  While my initial reaction was that this was some sort of scam, the agent acknowledged they sent the text and subsequently sent me down a rat-hole attempting to charge me for something they stated was free.  Why are you scamming customers? 

Expert

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110K Messages

1 year ago

Concern moved here to the Customer Service help section for greater exposure to Comcast corporate employees (The Digital Care Team) for assistance.

Official Employee

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1.1K Messages

1 year ago

Hello @user_pb5rvy, thanks for reaching out to share your expiernece and express your concerns. These are not the experiences we wish for our customers to have, and our team is here to help however we can. 

To get started, please use the chat icon in the upper right to enter Direct Messaging. Type "Xfinity Support" in the to line, then select "Xfinity Support" from the drop-down list and send us a message with your full name and full address.

4 Messages

Following the experience I've detailed in the post, I'm reluctant to follow this suggestion, only to have more of my time wasted.

Official Employee

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1.1K Messages

@user_pb5rvy

I completely understand your concerns! While I can't promise our department would have any different offers available, we are still here to help however we can. If you change your mind and would like us to take a look at your account, please send us a message at anytime. 

I am an Official Xfinity Employee.
Official Employees are from multiple teams within Xfinity: CARE, Product, Leadership.
We ask that you post publicly so people with similar questions may benefit from the conversation.
Was your question answered? Please, mark a reply as the Accepted Answer.tick
I am an Official Xfinity Employee.
Official Employees are from multiple teams within Xfinity: CARE, Product, Leadership.
We ask that you post publicly so people with similar questions may benefit from the conversation.
Was your question answered? Please, mark a reply as the Accepted Answer.tick
I am an Official Xfinity Employee.
Official Employees are from multiple teams within Xfinity: CARE, Product, Leadership.
We ask that you post publicly so people with similar questions may benefit from the conversation.
Was your question answered? Please, mark a reply as the Accepted Answer.tick

Official Employee

 • 

1.1K Messages

@user_pb5rvy

We have been in the process of doing mid-split upgrade for our customers, and this could explain why you received the message about needing a tech out. What this service does is upgrades our customers upload speeds at no extra cost, but in some cases a tech is needed to benefit from the service. However, without being able to see your account, I wouldn't know for sure why the automated system prompted you to contact us for a tech visit. 

In most cases, the automated system is not there to market to our customers, and from the text you receive this seemed specific to upload speeds, not changing your plan for more download speed. I believe what has happened was the reps you spoke with were mistaken about why you received that message, or were unfamiliar with the mid-split upgrades rolling out to our customers. 

If this is for the mid-split upgrade, no changes to your plan would be necessary, and the changes would go into effect automatically. 

I am an Official Xfinity Employee.
Official Employees are from multiple teams within Xfinity: CARE, Product, Leadership.
We ask that you post publicly so people with similar questions may benefit from the conversation.
Was your question answered? Please, mark a reply as the Accepted Answer.tick
I am an Official Xfinity Employee.
Official Employees are from multiple teams within Xfinity: CARE, Product, Leadership.
We ask that you post publicly so people with similar questions may benefit from the conversation.
Was your question answered? Please, mark a reply as the Accepted Answer.tick
I am an Official Xfinity Employee.
Official Employees are from multiple teams within Xfinity: CARE, Product, Leadership.
We ask that you post publicly so people with similar questions may benefit from the conversation.
Was your question answered? Please, mark a reply as the Accepted Answer.tick

4 Messages

@XfinityRyanE​ 

In retrospect, I get the impression that Comcast Xfinity used the Xfinity Assistant as a marketing tool in an effort to up-sell me something.  Both the chat and voice agents attempted to sell me mobile services during our interaction.  While I explicitly said I wasn't interested in changing mobile providers, the chat agent continued to press the mobile services.  There was an obvious disregard for my statement that I was not interested.  The voice agent was slightly less aggressive but did question what mobile service I currently had.  This felt like an attempt to collect information about me.  The voice agent was not initially aware of any free service upgrade, even though I reiterated that's what I was told by the chat agent.  This gave me an overall sense of mistrust, and then she subsequently indicated in fact there was a promotion that would cost 1-cent more.  The first agent didn't say anything to that effect, and in the end, as I stated above, the actual difference was about $4.00/month higher.  If there was in fact some free service upgrade, why didn't they just apply it?  Why would I need to sign some new agreement to benefit from something that was supposedly free?  So, as I stated, all of this leads me to believe the initial communication was just an attempt to upsell me something.  A very disappointing experience which left me feeling deceived.

1 Message

1 year ago

Thank you so much for this post! The same thing happened to me. I received a text and I felt it was a scam. I hate that we are experiencing so much confusion as paid customers but the community is stronger. Thank you again. 

New Poster

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3 Messages

11 months ago

I've been getting the same emails and texts.  Thanks for sharing.  I experienced a similar rabbit hole event, but the agent I finally talked to didn't know about said promotion and said he could send a technician if I was having problems.  I didn't bother with that.  What a waist of our time!

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