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Or in other words, "what should I do if I gave a scammer remote access to my computer?" How To Beat A Tech Support Scammer - A 10-Point Plan Once you realize what's happened, you need to take immediate action to minimize the potential damage. #What is ultraviewer used for software#If it identifies a virus, it will tell you and give you the option of deleting it but genuine security software doesn't ask you to make a phone call. #What is ultraviewer used for Pc#So if you gave the caller access, you've exposed your PC security to them.Ī more clever way the scammers may try to reach you is by tricking you into downloading malware onto your PC, which then flashes a warning that you have a virus and need to contact "tech support" to have it removed.Īgain, that's not the way legitimate security software works. Put it this way: If they knew what was happening on your PC, that would mean they must already have remote access, so why would they need to request it? Tech companies just don't operate that way. If someone phoned you claiming to be from Tech Support or claiming they've detected a virus on your PC and they need access, it was a scam. How will you know you're one of those victims? It's simple. More Scam Reports: 10 Simple and Inexpensive Ways to Cut Your Home Heating Bill This Winter - Without Getting ScammedĪccording to Microsoft's Digital Crime Unit, some 3.3 million people fall victim to the tech support scam every year, costing victims around $1.5 billion. We've reported on the tech support scam before in our article, Latest Car Parts, Tech Support and Domain Name Scams, and hope you've managed to evade these crooks.īut what if you - or someone you know - gets caught out and gives PC access to these crooks? Once they get access, they can digitally crawl all over your PC, looking for confidential information like passwords and account numbers.Īnd after they're done, they may leave a piece of malware on your PC that enables them to access it at any time or plug it into a botnet - a network of compromised computers that are forced to send out spam. You probably know what "remote access" is, but for those who don't, it's a feature of Windows that enables someone in another location to access your PC via the Internet.īut you have to give them permission via your PC first, which is why these scammers make their spoof calls. They tell you they've detected a virus on your PC and need to be given remote access to put it right. These are the people who claim to be from Microsoft or another computer firm. Much as most of us like to think we're smart enough not fall for a scam, millions of people are conned every year into giving access to their PCs to tech support imposters. What to Do if You Fell for a Tech Support Scam We'll give you a 10-point action plan in this week's issue, answering the question, "what should I do if I gave a scammer remote access to my computer?", give you Microsoft's tech support number and information on how to get tech support from Microsoft, and give you information about a new variation in the tax bill scam.Īnd, we'll point you to the legitimate tech support service we use to fix problems and help protect all our computers. So what do you do if you're one of those unfortunate victims? ![]() Tech support scams affect 3.3 million people and cost $1.5 billion every year. 10-point action plan for resolving fake tech support access to your PC: Internet Scambusters #710 ![]()
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