Submission + - Is it possible to fight Verizon and win?
Anyone in this situation knows how frustrating it can be, as just confirming with Verizon that they are blocking port 80, upstream from my residence, was an ordeal. It took multiple calls to their IT department, and 2 callbacks from a supervisor. After correcting a level 1 tech and telling me that "no" they do not block port 80, she called back then next day to inform me she was wrong; they do indeed block port 80 on non-business accounts. She could not help me with unblocking port 80, offering 3 options:
- Switch to a business account
- Setup my web-server on a different port
- Do nothing.
Instead I asked to be transferred to the sales department and requested the rep show me where I should have seen Verizon stated they block port 80. Sales was less helpful & even more frustrating. The rep was unable to produce where I would have seen this, and was unable to find Verizon's TOS so we could reference it. The icing on the cake was the promised, within 24 hour, callback from a sales supervisor that never occurred.
From my own digging through the TOS, I can confirm Verizon does not mention blocking port 80 on residential accounts. Clearly Verizon does not understand their own policies. The closest I can find is a mention that residential accounts may not use web-servers, yet their own IT department gave me the solution of running my web-server on an alternative port. Additionally some applications blur the line between client and server; I wonder if prohibiting a "server" is reasonable or if many customers are unknowingly breaking this rule now.
Today I'm reading through docs on fcc.gov about network neutrality to find some leverage before I call their sales unit again.
Has anyone else at Slashdot been down this road with Verizon, or a similar ISP and 'won' through reason?
Can anyone else recommend additional (US legal) sources that may help me, and future American geeks with home web-sites, to combat Verizon and its restrictive residential policies.