| Scammers have gotten good at convincing unsuspecting victims that they have a computer virus. Their end game is to take your money or gain access to your personal financial information. |
| How It Works: |
- You get a call or see a pop-up message on your computer warning that you have a virus (the caller will claim to be from Microsoft or Apple or another well-known tech company).
- They convince you to give them remote access to your computer so they can fix the problem, but they actually install malware that steals sensitive data like user names and passwords.
- Or, they get you to fork over credit card information and charge you for phony services, or services you could get for free.
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| What You Should Know: |
- Criminals have figured out how to spoof caller ID numbers so they appear to be calling from a legitimate company, so don’t rely on caller ID.
- Even tech savvy consumers get caught up in this scam, so don’t assume you are immune.
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| What You Should Do: |
- Hang up on anyone claiming to be from tech support.
- If you get a pop-up alert that appears to freeze your computer, don’t follow the instructions. Just shut down your computer and restart to get rid of the phony ad.
- Look inside the tech support scam from the perspective of a former scammer at www.aarp.org/techscams
Reprinted from AARP Fraud Network. |
