The latest scam going around is fooling many people, and this article and attached tutorials are designed to help you identify the scam and avoid being taken for hundreds of dollars. Here’s how this scam typically happens…
You’re surfing the web when all of sudden, a message pops up that says “Don’t close this window, you have a virus! Call the phone number listed below for immediate assistance.” So you panic. You then try to close the message, but the cursor is frozen and the window won’t close. You can’t quit your browser, and so you panic some more. Even though it doesn’t sound like a good idea, you decide to call the number, where a man or woman with a friendly eastern accent answers (not always true). You are quickly guided through installing software that allows the tech support agent to remotely control your computer. They guide you to some folders on your hard drive that you’ve never seen before, and show you some files that are named strangely. These files are identified as a virus, and the tech support agent offers to install some good anti-virus software for $700. You mention that you can’t afford this much, and so they offer to lower it to only $500. Perhaps you haggle to an even lower price, and then you give them your credit card number. After the money is paid, the warning message is closed and your computer returns to working like normal. You say goodbye to the agent and all is well again.
Sound familiar? No doubt either you or someone you know has been affected by this scam. Some people pay the charges, while others hang up the phone before giving out their credit card number. Even if you avoid the charges, the agent will call you repeatedly over the next few months to try again to get payment.
So how do you avoid these scams? It’s best to understand what to look for and how to resolve these situations. Avoiding the pop-up warning messages can be tricky because it’s hard to know what was clicked to prompt the message. These messages seemingly pop up when viewing very innocent websites, which means that this scam can potentially appear anywhere. Often times, the messages appear when an advertisement is clicked, perhaps accidentally. It can also happen if you type in an accidental, but incorrect website address that’s off by even a single letter. Because you never know when one of these messages will appear, it’s best to know how to identify a scam and what to do to get out of these panic inducing situations.
I stumbled across one of these virus warning messages the other day while helping a client look for printer drivers online. The message that appeared even had a recorded voice telling me about all the malware on the computer. I knew what these messages looked like and how to resolve it, and so my client and I just had a good laugh instead of panicking. We closed the window and went on with life. You can do the same…
I hope to complete this article in more depth on this blog, but in the meantime, I’ve got a couple documents in PDF that you can download that will give you more information on what to look for, and what to do if you get caught in one of these situations. There are three documents below; one is for Mac users, one for PC users, and one for iOS users (iPhone/iPad). I recommend downloading the document(s) you need, printing them out, and keeping them near your computer so the information is handy when the situation arises.
For Mac users: Click Here
For PC users: Click Here
For iOS users: Click Here