PHOENIX — Do you look over your credit card and bank statements line by line? Susan Smith says she found quite a surprise when she did.
She says there were many small charges from Google on numerous cards and she says she was not responsible for any of them.
"I'm very careful with my credit card online. I don't let Google remember it and use it for the next time," Susan said.
Susan says she only pays for one newspaper subscription through Google, yet she says she found 131 charges for around $200 on 3 different cards.
Some charges say Google Play while others say Google Brandy or BIGO.
BIGO is an app you can buy on Google Play.
For a year now, the Let Joe Know team has been trying to get Google's attention as complaints keep pouring in.
Nearly 200 people have let me know they too faced unknown, mostly small Google charges.
And most people say they get little help from Google.
Melissa emailed saying she's facing "roughly 1,000 transactions totaling approx. $8,000."
She says all of the charges show Google and she's not responsible for them.
"It's happening outside the U.S as well," said Matthew who emailed from Europe.
Charmone let me know from South Africa that Google charges were deducted he says, "without his knowledge."
On its website, Google says legitimate charges show "Google" followed by an asterisk, then an app name, developer, or content type.
Some of Susan's charges show that format, but others say Google and don't have the asterisk.
When she contacted Google, Susan said they didn't take any responsibility.
Many let me know they heard the same thing.
While some banks removed the charges, you only have 60 days todispute them.
"Some of the charges were so old they weren't willing to deal with them," Susan said.
In an email to us, Google says "thanks for bringing this to our attention. The press team is not able to investigate customer support issues to protect user privacy. If a user needs to report charges they don't recognize, the correct channel is here.
Susan says she was able to get back about $70 of the $200.
It's a big reminder to read bank statements line by line and challenge anything immediately.
Same problem? Email me: joe@abc15.com
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