A pandemic-era initiative has helped millions of low-income families stay connected. But it has suffered persistent abuses, a Post investigation has found, as telecom giants have introduced price hikes, speed cuts and fraud risks.
October 25, 2022 at 3:30 p.m. EDT
Illustration by Anson Chan for The Washington Post
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The complaints began pouring into Washington this summer, the criticism directed at Assurance Wireless, a little-known company owned by the telecom giant T-Mobile.
In Sun Valley, Calif., a local resident in June claimed that Assurance Wireless sent an agent to their mother’s door — and pushed her to sign up for mobile internet funded by the federal government even though she didn’t need it.
Another in Phoenixville, Pa., alleged a month later that they received a “deceptive” offer in a text message — which ultimately resulted in federal aid being sent to Assurance Wireless for service that the customer said they didn’t seek.
And time and again, a social worker in South Boston claimed Assurance Wireless and other providers had enrolled seniors in the government program under dubious terms. Sounding off to the Federal Communications Commission, the nation’s chief telecom regulator, the unnamed writer coupled their criticism with a plea for help: “This is not an isolated incident for me.”
