Surprise, Pay $1000

# Summary Forestwalk Labs tried Blacksmith, a GitHub Actions alternative, on its free trial without providing a credit card, but continued using the service beyond the free limit after receiving warning emails. The company was subsequently invoiced for over $1,000 in overages, with Blacksmith clarifying that "disruption to service" meant account flagging rather than automatic job suspension, and that their terms technically allow billing for free-tier overages. The incident highlights a gap between user expectations—that free services without credit card requirements won't result in surprise invoices—and what Blacksmith's fine print actually permits.