Computer and phone scams are rampant if my voice mail is any judge. For the last few weeks I’ve been getting a voice mail message with the following recording:
“This call is in regards to the security software we installed on your computer last year. Now we see a red flag on our end stating there is a security breach on it. Please call 1-866-758-1262. I repeat, 1-866-758-1262. Thank you.”
We’ve also received phone calls from regular people like you or me who fell victim to these scams.
Whenever you receive a call on your home or mobile phone from a number that you do not recognize, be extra careful. Dell or Microsoft or Toshiba or even Apple won’t be calling you to tell you that your computer has a virus. When you get this kind of call, your spider-sense should be tingling!
Some of these computer and phone scams are very sophisticated. There are times though when you answer the phone and the person on the other end is very convincing. You might believe them and agree that they can access your computer remotely. Then when you hang up the phone you have second thoughts.
What steps should you take if you think you’ve been scammed?
- Turn your machine off.
- Disconnect the internet from your machine. You may need to unplug the Ethernet cable from your machine or turn off the router if you have wireless service.
- Turn your machine back on and confirm that your anti-virus is still working and is still installed.
- Start your virus scanner. It should tell you whether any malware has been installed, and it should remove those programs.
- Once your virus scanner has completed and has removed any potential threats, you can reconnect your internet.
- For the next few days be very cautious about how you use your machine. For example, it would be prudent not to enter any financial or banking information on that machine – use your phone or iPad instead. If the machine doesn’t show any signs of continued infection, it should be fine. If it starts displaying pop-ups or becomes very slow, it’s time to call in a professional to do a thorough scrub of the machine.
You can find other symptoms of an infected machine here:
INFORMATION ABOUT GEEK FOR HIRE, INC.
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Chris Eddy of Geek For Hire, Inc. has provided computer service to families and small businesses with Mac’s and PCs for the past eighteen years. Angie’s List and the BBB rate Geek For Hire very highly. You can find more on our website, or give us a call at 303-618-0154. Geek For Hire, Inc. provides onsite service (Tier 3 support) to the Denver / Boulder / Front Range area and remote service throughout North America.
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