Beware the Tech Support Phone Scam

computer-scamsAnnoying phone calls are a fact of life but today, they can carry a serious threat.  The latest scam preys on one thing most people don’t understand – their computer.


The call comes from a heavily accented caller identifying themselves as being the IT Department of Windows or the Customer Service Department.  The caller explains that your computer is infected with viruses that are eating up your mother board and destroying your computer.  They instruct you to click on start, run and enter an address they give you.  At that point, they take over your computer and can plant viruses or corrupt the operating system.  The caller then asks for your credit card to fix the issue.


In a variation on this scam, the caller identifies themselves as being from the Best Buy Geek Squad.  One victim attempted to write a bad review of the company that called but while they were writing it,  the scammers locked them out, took over their computer and rewrote the review as a positive review.


Should you receive a call like this, HANG UP immediately.  Microsoft will never call no matter how badly infected your computer gets.  If you have let someone access you computer, immediately turn off your computer and disconnect it from the internet.  If you have concerns about your computer security (check what is CSPM here for security), contact a local computer repair service company.


Gary Wagnon, the owner of 800biz Ninja Marketing and the Ninja Marketing Dojo, is a social media trainer and online marketing consultant.

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