I was charged multiple times—roughly ¥7,500 per month—for a subscription I never knowingly signed up for. When I contacted my credit card company (JCB), they informed me that the merchant behind the charges was "Astroline," an astrology website I have never used or visited. Later, I contacted Solidgate (the payment processor), and was told the charges actually came from PDFGuru instead. I have no connection to either Astroline or PDFGuru and never authorized any subscription from them. I reached out to PDFGuru.
After multiple emails—dealing with at least six different support agents, none of whom stayed consistent—I was eventually told that a refund would be issued. However, the refund only covered charges from March 2025 onward.
The earlier charges from December 2024 to January 2025 remain unrefunded, and no explanation has been provided for why those are excluded. PDFGuru stated: > "Due to certain technical restrictions set by banking systems, we cannot process refunds for transactions made beyond a specific time frame. Unfortunately, this is standard practice across many financial institutions and is beyond our control." However, this is not an acceptable excuse.
It fails to address the core issue—that unauthorized charges were made—and it disregards the customer's right to accountability. Refusing refunds on such grounds is evasive and irresponsible. Moreover, I do not consider myself a "customer."
I never knowingly subscribed or signed up. Yet they still charged me, and now avoid taking full responsibility.
I specifically requested concrete evidence proving that I personally registered—such as IP address, device info, or a confirmation screen—but never received a meaningful answer. Every reply has been vague or deflective, and none of my core questions were addressed. Solidgate also presented an old, no-longer-used email address to justify the subscription.
That email was once linked to a family member, but we never used it to authorize any payments or sign-ups. Despite repeated requests, Solidgate now claims that I should contact PDFGuru directly,
Even though it was Solidgate who submitted the charges under a completely different merchant name (Astroline) to my credit card company. This inconsistency itself is a red flag. To this day, only part of the money has been refunded—the earlier months are still pending without justification,
And I've had to reissue my credit card to prevent further abuse. This experience has been deeply frustrating and concerning. I strongly advise others to be very cautious with any services connected to Solidgate or PDFGuru. --- --- この件は、私自身が知らない間に毎月約7,500円がクレジットカードから引き落とされていたというものです。 JCBに問い合わせたところ、請求元は「占いサイト（Astroline）」とされていましたが、実際のサービスは「PDFGuru」と主張されました。 いずれも利用した覚えはなく、返金要求にも関わらず一部しか返金されていません。 対応も非常に不誠実で、複数人の担当者が入れ替わり、証拠提示の要望にも応じてもらえませんでした。 SolidgateやPDFGuruに関わる請求には、十分ご注意ください。