"Roll Your Own" Dish Network: Is It Possible?

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Schmoe

Active SatelliteGuys Member
Original poster
Aug 6, 2005
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Hi guys,
GREAT forum here. I've really got alot of great info from reading through your posts.

I was planning on getting Dish, but was disappointed to learn that a Social Security number was required when signing up. I'm just a bit too paranoid about identity theft to give out my SS# to Dish, so I'm trying to figure some way around it.

As I understand it, Dish does not require your SS# if you do not use one of their "free equipment" offers. Correct? So, does that mean that I can buy my own equipment on ebay(making sure that the receivers have been released, no balance, etc.) and install the dish myself? Then can I activate said equipment through Dish without a SS#?

Here's the equipment I'm planning on:
1 Dish 322 receiver
1 Dish 311 Receiver
1 Dual Dishpro LNB Dish

Does that look okay? Do I need a multiswitch as well? Or are they built-in(like Directv)?

Thanks for any advice!
 
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Schmoe said:
Hi guys,
GREAT forum here. I've really got alot of great info from reading through your posts.

I was planning on getting Dish, but was disappointed to learn that a Social Security number was required when signing up. I'm just a bit too paranoid about identity theft to give out my SS# to Dish, so I'm trying to figure some way around it.

As I understand it, Dish does not require your SS# if you do not use one of their "free equipment" offers. Correct? So, does that mean that I can buy my own equipment on ebay(making sure that the receivers have been released, no balance, etc.) and install the dish myself? Then can I activate said equipment through Dish without a SS#?

Here's the equipment I'm planning on:
1 Dish 322 receiver
1 Dish 311 Receiver
1 Dual Dishpro LNB Dish

Does that look okay? Do I need a multiswitch as well? Or are they built-in(like Directv)?

Thanks for any advice!
Click to expand...


sorry bud they require the SS# for billing purposes... and to determine customer rating and credit level... why the credit level? so they ensure they dont lose money on deadbeats... dont get me wrong your probably not a troublesome customer just paranoid about his/her ssn... and I undersand that but I honestly dont think ther eis a way aorund it.

Youll need a quad LNB... and depending on locals you may need a superdish... what is your Zip and someone can look taht up.
 
do they not take driver licences numbers? if i remember corretly, no company can make you give your ssn number. when i signed up for cable, i was able to give them an alternate form of id.

welcome to the site schmoe.
 
You have the option of giving them only the last 4 digets of your SSN but they charge you $50 for this, they then match up your last 4 of your SSN with other databases and find your full SSN.

Kind of scarry actually.
 
You don't need an SSN if you buy all your equipment, install yourself, and call them up just to activate.

I've activated customers this way.
 
...Now I'm more confused than ever :( Why would they need SS# for billing? Don't they keep a credit card number on file(in case of a deadbeat customer)?

bcshields-This is what I had heard. It was my understanding that they wouldn't even ask for my SS# if I owned my own equipment.

So... I need a Dishpro quad LNB for a 311 and a dual-tuner 322? Is the multiswitch built-in, or do I need a switch as well?

Thanks for all your help guys.
 
Schmoe said:
...Now I'm more confused than ever :( Why would they need SS# for billing? Don't they keep a credit card number on file(in case of a deadbeat customer)?

bcshields-This is what I had heard. It was my understanding that they wouldn't even ask for my SS# if I owned my own equipment.

So... I need a Dishpro quad LNB for a 311 and a dual-tuner 322? Is the multiswitch built-in, or do I need a switch as well?

Thanks for all your help guys.
Click to expand...

Mainly to make it easier to report to credit agencies if you don't pay, reduce signal theft at multiple locations, reduce fake names and information from being provided.
 
Call them and try setting it up without a ssn and see how far it gets you. It is legal because they do give you an option to not provide a ssn but their is a non refundable charge of 250$. So at no point are you obligated to, but even if you setup a no promotion account, they will still ask for the ssn, the last 4 for the 50$ or the full with no cost additionally. I used to work for them and you can feel free to call and ask for a supervisor to verify this information.
 
Yes, you'll go with the No Promotion option AND pay DISH Network a $200 account set up fee (basically to protect them in case you don't pay for 2 months of service).

But if you go with DirecTV, you can pay your local retailer $150 and get the equipment installed for free without a SSN being provided to DirecTV.

I usually recommend DISH but in your case, DirecTV might be better on the no SSN requirement. ;)
 
bcshields said:
You don't need an SSN if you buy all your equipment, install yourself, and call them up just to activate.

I've activated customers this way.
Click to expand...


DISH REALLY SUCKS
 
cobra55 said:
DISH REALLY SUCKS
Click to expand...


Anybody else notice a theme in cobra's posts? :p

On topic. I could have sworn that Dish had eliminated the $50 charge if you only gave them the last four of your SSN. I could be wrong on this but you might want to give them a call and ask them about it.
 
Giving the last 4 doesn't solve the initial poster's problem. They're still pulling up his SS #. And yes, the SS # techincally, legally, cannot be required for identification purposes.

Some day in the future, when I have kids, they won't even HAVE a SS. Why in the WORLD would I force them to partake in that bankrupt (from the start) system anyway. But they'll still be real people with real jobs that can pay real money for real services. :P
 
Here's the thing. I'm Canadian, and I don't have a SSN. When this came up, and they settled on the last 4 digits, I gave them the last 4 of my Canadian Social Insurance Number. They were quite fine with that.

One thing I recall from school, is American SSN's and Canadian SIN's use the same algorythms, and the last digit is actually a check digit. So if your SSN is "1234" they can check the 123 part and see that the last digit must be a 4.
 
Scott Greczkowski said:
You have the option of giving them only the last 4 digets of your SSN but they charge you $50 for this, they then match up your last 4 of your SSN with other databases and find your full SSN.
Click to expand...
I've looked all over, but I can't seem to find any evidence that they can get your whole social security number from just the last four digits. :what From what I've read, when the last four digits are required, it's usually just to keep your name separate in their records(for example, in case another customer has the same name).

Can anyone else confirm or deny that it's even possible to get the whole SS# from just the last four digits and the person's name?
 
You can get credit qualified and lease the equipment with the last 4 of the social and a credit or debit card. There is no charge for only using the last four of the social. If you want to buy the system you can go with a cash and carry deal. $199 for two tuners. You would have to purchase the additional tuner (311)
 
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