CONSUMER watchdogs in a North-East town are celebrating victory over a fax scam.

Last November, Hartlepool Borough Council's trading standards team warned businesses in the town to beware of unsolicited faxes purporting to come from India.

UK firms had been receiving the faxes, stating that their fax number would be sold to third parties outside Europe for advertising purposes, and that if the recipient did not want this to happen they had to fax back. The sting in the tail was that the number they had to fax back to was a premium rate number.

Hartlepool trading standards team was among those who reported the matter to national watchdog ICSTIS - the Independent Committee for the Supervision of Standards of Telephone Information Services. Now ICSTIS has fined the firm behind the scam £8,000 and access to the fax line has been blocked for 12 months.

Michael Welsh, Hartlepool council's principal trading standards officer, said: "We are very pleased that ICSTIS has taken this action. Although a fax-back rate of £1.50 was quoted in the small print at the bottom of the fax, the duration of the fax call was not. The machine at the other end would probably have worked very slowly in receiving the fax, clocking up a hefty bill for the unwitting victim.

"Another example, which we have reported to ICSTIS, is a fax from Marbella, Spain, inviting people to fax back if they want to register to receive investment tips or special offers. Again, it involves a premium rate number."