Be Wary of Scammers Posing as Tech Support

Phishing attacks aren’t just limited to fraudulent emails. We’ve recently heard reports of scammers calling people on the phone, claiming to be from Microsoft or the local cable company, and telling potential victims that their computer contains a virus, or that their PC is a risk to all the users in the area and needs to be cleansed or shut down.

If the victim takes the bait, he or she is directed to a fraudulent website and told to enter a code. With that, the scammer gains total control over the victim’s computer. In addition to deleting files or installing malicious software, the scammer can read the victim’s personal files or configure the computer to store and distribute stolen software, adult material, or illegal content.

In many cases, the scammer will attempt to coerce payment from the victim to remove the non-existent virus or even to merely relinquish control of the machine.

If you unwittingly become a victim of this scam, contact law enforcement and consider cancelling your credit card if you made a payment to the scammers. To protect yourself from falling victim, do not cooperate with people calling you out of the blue claiming to be from tech support, especially if you don’t have a contract with a tech support or managed service provider. If you do have such a contract, verify the identity of the caller, the name of the company, and their phone number. Legitimate support personnel (like a trusty CMIT technician) should be happy to provide such information.