quiltingcurious

An hour ago, I got a phone call supposedly from Microsoft Tech Maintenance Dept saying that they have been receiving error messges from my computer for some time now, that I had an infection on my hard drive, something about International Router System.
When I questioned what is the name of the infection, he talked around it. I told him I had Anti-Virus, Spyware, Malwarebytes software, he said it wouldn't catch anything like this.
He tried to get me to follow steps from Start and I wouldn't. I asked for a phone number where he could be reached, he never gave it to me.
I've never received a phone call from Microsoft, unless it is a callback after I have contacted a technician there.
He told me my computer was going to crash. I told him I had computers over 10 years and never got an infection that crashed my comptuter.
I hung up and called a person that fixes computers, he said it was a scam, that he'd gotten a call last week from a guy that had the same phone call but he had no computer, the guy hung up on him.
I could hear another person on a phone line talking as he was talking to me.
I was afraid he would try to gain access to my computer, so I wouldn't comply.
Be warned, this isn't the way Microsoft works or any other company.

k9dancer

Thanks for the heads-up. I wouldn't have done anything either; those bad guys get craftier every day. "If only they used their powers for good, Batman."

w7sue

The same goes for banking emails - I have received three of them in the past week (in my spam box) and one of them is from a bank that we haven't banked with for over 15 years! The subject line told me my account was blocked ... never open them and know that banks would never send an email to you.

GrandmaNewt

This scam has been around for awhile, and recently hit the news. http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2012/10/pecon.shtm

The scammers will claim to be from microsoft or some other big computer tech support company. They try to trick you into giving them remote access to your computer. They will try to charge you hundreds of dollars to clean your computer of non existant viruses.

Good for you for hanging up on him! Supposedly the FTC is going after these scammers, but lets face it, they are all overseas and not a whole lot that they can do about it.

freewilly

Thanks for posting. I did get a call like that, too. And let me add a warning that some scammers may sound very convincing. My caller knew how to talk. As a matter of fact, he almost convinced me. Had I not known that such a scam has been happening, I might have allowed the scammer access to my computer. Tsk tsk..

So you guys out there, be cautious about suspicious calls.

freewilly

And if you do get calls like that, I strongly suggest you report them to www.callercenter.com and the FTC in an attempt to shut the scam down.

miss_ticky2

Yep...had that call last year, or earlier this year. He was most insistent that I follow his instructions...which of course I didn't and had no intention of doing.

quiltingcurious

Thanks for all the replies, don't have caller ID so don't have their number to report, of course, there is call blocking too.
I wondered how they got my number to begin with, never addressed me, that made me suspicious too, but I have had to call Tech Support many times and know they don't call you, unless you have already started an inquiry and they may follow up after they helped you and they give you a case number. After I posted this, got another call and hung up. There were two more calls after that, wouldn't answer.

nativetexan

thanks for the info. some time ago i got a call about my computer and i just said i didn't have one and hung up. I have no idea who he was supposed to be. I get odd emails too, supposedly from UPS about a refused return or something. i delete those quickly.

jitkaau

The scammers tried the same with me on two occasions through Sype - so everyone just needs to be careful - just like when your parents gave you telephone education of how to behave if anyone rang whilst you were home alone.