The day before yesterday there arrived a mail from Digital River, which stated that they – on behalf of Bitdefender – had been charging my account for an auto-renewal.
I couldn’t really understand a thing, because all my active licenses are not due to be renewed until much later dates – the first in October this year and the two others in January and February 2013. But Digital River wrote that the underlying order and document could be found under the link of “Find My Order”.
When I looked at the document in question I was even more dumbfounded. It turned out be a license from 2009 – one furthermore with *manual renewal*! I had cancelled this order on the 17th of September 2009 and the licenses had expired 8 days later on the 25th of September that very same year. So this was the license that Bitdefender claimed to be the foundation for their action to charge me with an auto-renewal. More grievous still is the fact that no “warning” mails had arrived from Digital River prior to the charge. I have learned by studying similar problems here at the forum that there should be at least 3 such mails sent to prevent mistakes to be made, mistakes of this very nature I would believe.
I immediately contacted Bitdefender support and opened up a ticket on the issue. I promptly received an answer but it was a strange one indeed. The support person stated rather noncommittally that since I had bought a product from Bitdefender, I would have to agree to an auto-renewal. It didn’t seem to me as if the person had read the included underlying documents, proving that the original order was history today and not subject to any kind of renewal. The underlying documents were not commented on or discussed in any way. Other mails from me on the issue have been left unheeded.
So, let me say that if *this* is the official standpoint on behalf of Bitdefender, I’m appalled, and it’ll certainly will be the final nail in this coffin. I have been a Bitdefender costumer since at least 2007 but in no way will I renew any licenses with Bitdefender in the fall or the beginning of next year and under no circumstances will I permit them via either Avangate of Digital River, without prior warning and me agreeing to the action, to charge my credit card.
I feel very bad about it all. I feel let down. And I feel subject to the precise action, which I though Bitdefender was to defend me against: Intrusion into my privacy in the form of my credit card and a rip-off!
