Albert Heijn needs to give their AH-mobiel pre-paid user-experience more love
Posted by jpluimers on 2024/05/09
If you have an prepaid Dutch AH-mobiel SIM card, topping it up or refilling is a hell as none of the web-links you get via SMS or top vouchers function.
When you get an SMS warning that your account is almost running out, it contains the link to [Wayback/Archive] ah.nl/opwaarderen which has no indication how to refill.
When buying a refill voucher at the Albert Heijn store, it contains two links that lead to HTTP 404 error pages:
- [Wayback/Archive] Albert Heijn – Pagina niet gevonden – 404-error – ah.nl/beltegoed
- [Wayback/Archive] Albert Heijn – Pagina niet gevonden – 404-error – ah.nl/mobiel
Albert Heijn has their own [Wayback/Archive] ah.nl domain (which sometimes is totally down), but the refill link is on a completely different domain which – from a phishing point of view – is ideal to lure people into other refill pages.
The only Albert Heijn web-page linking to the actual refill link is [Wayback/Archive] Sim Only | Albert Heijn: ah.nl/over-ah/winkelservices/mobiel/sim-only.
The on-line refill link is [Wayback/Archive] AH mobiel opwaarderen: https://reload.alphacomm.network/web/ah which raises all kinds of red phishing flags:
- an uncommon TLD (top-level domain)
.network. - no
ahin the domain name (only at the end of the URL) - no
mobielin the domain name or URL (the mobile phone service is called AH mobiel) - no words like opwaarderen/refill/top
- the company alphacomm is very unknown and from a quick look at at the [Wayback/Archive] drimble alphacomm – Google Search results might have a shady company structure (including one that got belly up)
- only links to non-alphacomm privacy statements or terms of conditions, so it is totally unclear why alphacomm is the hub:
When you buy a refill voucher to top up your account, you need to enter the voucher code using DTMF after dialing 1266. I needed three tries for the voice computer to actually function (the first time I got silence to get through the menu: just silence after dialing it; the second time silene after going through the submenu).
So it is not on-line love, but also voice computer love.
Dutch sources (note their web care team did not respond at all):
- [Wayback/Archive] Jeroen Wiert Pluimers on Twitter: “Dan is het @albertheijn beltegoed bijna op, krijg je een opwaardeer-SMS met daarin de link
ah.nl/opwaarderen, maar hoe moet je daar dan opwaarderen? #MissingCallToActionButton” - [Wayback/Archive] Everdien on Twitter: “@jpluimers @albertheijn
reload.alphacomm.network/web/ahstaat ergens onderaan.” - [Wayback/Archive] Jeroen Wiert Pluimers on Twitter: “@EefvanKoos @albertheijn Hoe weet je zeker dat dit geen oplichter is? Want compleet ander domain dan
ah.nl“ - [Wayback/Archive] Jeroen Wiert Pluimers on Twitter: “@EefvanKoos @albertheijn Omdat ik van @albertheijn niets meer terug hoorde heb ik in de winkel een opwaardeerbon gekocht. Op de bon staat
ah.nl/beltegoedenah.nl/mobielBeide links geven een 404-error. Ik vind het tijd dat AH iets meer aandacht aan AH-mobiel geeft.”
The Wiert Corner - irregular stream of stuff 
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