Women Are Not Allowed to Make Their Own Money Choices

This article just makes me angr Vodafone does not allow housewives to buy their phones (I assume househusbands as well, but the article doesn’t talk of them). A woman coming in to buy a new blackberry was turned away because she couldn’t provide a work number as she’s a stay at home mom. Apparently Vodafone is trying to weed out out of work people who might not be able to afford their bills. It obviously is not working.
And get this: they told her to get her husband to buy it for her. Can you imagine? Does anyone thinks this stinks of old school rights where women were not allowed to own property?