QUESTIONS ABOUT BILLING (^Top)

What kinds of payment do you accept?
We accept any cards that carry the Visa, MasterCard, and Discover logos. This includes any "check cards" or ATM cards that have the Visa or MasterCard logo on them. We also accept payment by check or money order through invoice billing.

How does invoice billing work?
If you choose to pay by check or money order using invoice billing, you will be sent a paper invoice in the mail that details any charges for the month. We send all of our invoices out the first week of each month, and they are due on the 25th. In addition, we charge a $1 per-invoice "Processing Fee". This charge does not apply if you pay your invoice online with a credit card (visit the Account Manager from our homepage).

If you choose to sign-up online to pay by invoice billing, your account will not be active until we receive your first payment. After your payment is received, we will call you and help you set-up your account. If you would like to use your account immediately after signing-up, choose "Credit Card Billing" during sign-up, then give us a call to switch to invoice billing for future payments.

When do you bill my credit card?
If you choose to pay with a credit card, we will bill it during the sign-up process. After the initial payment, we automatically bill your credit card each month (or each year, depending on the billing plan you choose) on or around the same date you signed-up. For example, if you signed-up on March 5 and chose a monthly billing plan, you would be billed again on (or around) April 5.

What happens if you can't bill my card?
If we can't bill your card at any time, we will send you a notice via email and US Mail. If we don't hear back, we will try to bill your card again after a few days. If your credit card still won't work, and if we don't hear from you to make other payment arrangements, we will turn off your account at the end of the month.

What is your refund policy?
If you were not able to use the service within 30 days of signing-up and you were never able to dial-in and connect to the service, we will refund your initial setup fee. If you were able to connect at any time, we will not be able to refund your first $9.95 payment. All payments after your initial payment are non-refundable.

How do I make changes to the way I'm billed?
If you need to change your credit card information or your billing address, use the Account Manager tool located on our homepage. To make changes to your service plan or to switch your billing method, please contact us via email.

CONTRACTS & CANCELLING (^Top)

Am I under a contract to stay with SaferAccess?
Absolutely not. You can cancel your SaferAccess service at any time by calling us. There is never a "termination fee" if you decide to cancel.

How do I cancel?
To cancel, just call us at 800-342-9863. Please do not cancel through the email. After your account has been cancelled, we will give you a confirmation number. This number is your proof that you cancelled your account with us. Until you have this number, your account is not cancelled and you will continue to be billed.

What if I prepaid for more than a month?
If you are paying for your service on a six-month or annual plan, and you are outside of the 30-day refund period, you will not receive a credit for any unused amount in your account. Six-month and annual plans carry a significant savings because we are guaranteed that you will use our service for a certain amount of time. If you're not sure that you're going to stay with SaferAccess for a long time, start out on the monthly plan; you can always upgrade your plan later by contacting us.

DIAL-UP & ACCESS NUMBERS (^Top)

Do you offer DSL or cable service?
Sorry, but no. There is currently no way for anyone but phone and cable companies to offer those services at a competitive rate. However, if you already have a broadband connection, we can provide a filter for it. Click here to find out about our filtering-only service.

Are all your numbers 56k?
Yes. All of our numbers use the v.90 or v.92 standard 56k.

Do you have v.92 service?
Yes. Some of our access locations support v.92. The ones that do have "(v.92)" typed next to them on the access number list.

Do you support "Modem-On-Hold"?
Yes. Most of our v.92 locations support this service. Send us an email to find out for sure.

How many people are using the number in my area?
This varies from location to location. (see the question about busy signals)

What is your user-to-modem ratio?
This varies from location to location. (see the question about busy signals)

Do I have to worry about busy signals?
No. We purchase dial-up services wholesale from many large providers around the country. These tier-one companies manage all of our dial-in numbers and constantly monitor their locations for quality, reliability, and capacity. If they find any problems, they will work to correct them immediately. Also, if you report a problem to us, we can notify our network providers of the issue so they may correct it.

Why is there a 250-hour limit?
In order to keep our costs as low as possible, we need to place a limit on the maximum amount of hours that each of our customers can use. Please keep in mind that 250 hours works out to an average of over 8 hours per day, so even the most Internet-savvy users should stay within their limit as long as they disconnect when they're not using the service.

What happens if I go over the 250-hour limit?
Once you reach the 250-hour limit, your service will be disabled for the rest of the calendar month. You will not be billed any overage charges. The 250 hour limit is per-household. You are not permitted to create another account to gain an additional 250 hours.

How do I know how many hours I've used?
You can view your monthly usage from the Account Manager tool, located on our homepage.

Will you disconnect me if I am not using my connection?
Yes. If your computer is not accessing any information from the Internet for 10 minutes, we will disconnect you. If you get disconnected, you can dial-up again right away, however, we do prohibit the use of "auto-dialers" and "keep-alive" programs in our Terms of Service Agreement.

Can I use an access number other than the one I signed-up with?
Yes. You can use any access number in our nationwide network. Please keep in mind that your telephone company may charge you long distance fees for dialing-into an access number that's outside of your local calling area. SaferAccess is not responsible for these fees. To be sure the number you're calling is toll-free, call your operator and ask.

WEB FILTERING (^Top)

I have a broadband connection. Can I buy just the filter?
Yes. Click here for information on our filtering-only product.

What kinds of web sites do you block?
We currently block the following kinds of web pages:

- Pornography & Sex
- Criminal Skills (i.e. bomb building)
- Hate Speech
- Gay/Lesbian
- Illegal Drugs

All other content is allowed through our filter.

Can I change which categories are blocked?
Can I view Internet usage reports?
Yes, just contact Customer Care and request an "Override Code". With the override code, you can log-into the filter management at http://filter.cnonline.net to manage your filter settings and get reports.

Can I override the filter with a password?
Yes. You can call Customer Care and request an override code be created. However, we randomly audit the override code usage, and if we find that the code is being used to allow access to pornographic information, we will revoke it.

What kinds of content are not blocked?
We block access to objectionable web sites. We also filter your SaferAccess.com email addresses for viruses. Every other type of content is not filtered in any way.

Does your service use a proxy server?
Yes. This service is based on proxy technology, where all of your web traffic is routed through a proxy server. In order to use the web, your web browser's proxy must be set to "proxy.saferaccess.com", port "8080". If this setting is not in your web browser, you will not be able to access any web pages outside of our site. Here's how to set this in Internet Explorer:
- Click the Tools menu, choose Internet Options
- Click the Connections tab
- Click your SaferAccess connection to select it
- Click the Settings button
- Check the "Use a proxy server..." box
- Type "proxy.saferaccess.com" in the address box
- Type "8080" in the port box.
- Click OK
- Click OK

EMAIL (^Top)

Can I access my mail account with Outlook Express (or another POP3 mail program)?
Yes. In fact, Outlook Express will be automatically set-up when you install our software. Our mail should work with any mail program, however, we only support Microsoft Outlook Express.

How much space is available in my mail account?
Your SaferAccess mailbox includes 30 MB of storage space. We can increase your storage space to 100 MB for an extra $2 per mailbox per month.

Can I add extra email addresses?
Yes. You can add extra mailboxes to your account for $1 per month per address. Just email us with the usernames and passwords of the mailbox(es) you'd like us to add.

What types of content are blocked by the email filter?
Our email filter blocks messages with known viruses or worms attached to them. All other messages are allowed to go through.

Can I add SPAM filtering service to my account?
Unfortunately, no. We do not offer this service at this time.

COMPATABILITY (^Top)

What operating systems will your dial-up service work on?
Our dial-up service will work on all recent versions of Windows, 98 or better. If you are using a Mac or another operating system, please try Christian-Net, our premium ISP service, instead.

What operating systems can your technical staff support?
Our staff is trained in Windows 95, 98, Me, 2000, and XP for full set-up and advanced troubleshooting. Our technicians can help you with any issue that relates to your dial-up connection and Internet Explorer.

ONLINE SIGNUP (^Top)

Is this secure?
Yes. We use the highest security measures available, including 128-bit SSL for collecting your information and for processing credit cards.

How do you protect my personal information?
The safety of your personal information is of utmost importance to us. As mentioned in the previous answer, we use 128-bit SSL encryption to make sure your data comes to us securely. We also use this same industry-leading encryption to process our credit card transactions. Once we receive your data, we store it in a secure database behind a firewall. Also, for your protection, your credit card information is even kept hidden from our employees.

Do I have to use a credit card?
No. You can sign-up for invoice billing, see the Billing section for more information.

When will my account be active?
If you sign-up using a credit card, your account will be active immediately after signing-up. If you choose to pay by invoice, your account will be active when we receive your first payment.

Can I sign-up over the phone?
Sorry, but no. Our signup process is integrated into our software which you can download from our web site. If you don't have an Internet connection on the computer you're dialing-in from, we will send you a free setup CD; just send us your address from the contact page or call us to order the CD. If you need to sign-up via telephone, try Christian-Net, our premium ISP service.

 

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