Windows 10: Microsoft Hacking Scam!

I made a big mistake!


My daughter calls me over saying her computer is being hacked. It showed a message claiming to be from Microsoft saying a virus is on her computer and to call the Microsoft Support number on the screen. I call the number, a woman with an Indian accent answers saying she is with Microsoft Support (there are many voices sounding like a call center in the background). She says in order to help me I need to give her access to my daughter's computer and tells me to hold down "microsoft key + r key", then gives me a series of letters and numbers to enter into a box. Like a fool I do so, she downloads GoToAssist and starts scrolling around saying we don't have good firewall protection and there are 12 hackers hacking through it right now. She says "whatever you do, don't turn off the computer or router. This will launch their program". Then the line goes dead.


I call back and speak with a man with an Indian accent saying he can't tell which support person was helping me. He tells me to do the "microsoft key + r key", then a series of letters and numbers again, then he tries to access GoToAssist, but can't saying "oh no, this is bad, let me try something else and downloads Supremo. Now he starts scrolling around and says there are 12 devices connected to my daughter's computer and they're trying to access our other devices connected to our router. He says let me see who they are, computer code scroll down the screen, then a map of the world, then a "mug shot" of some guy named Nikolai. "Do you know him? Well, he's on your devices right now. Here let me block him. Okay, I've blocked him, but your firewall is exposed... Here's what you need, 1 year protection for $499 or lifetime for $1,999." I tell him that's a lot more then I expected. He said its less then many other firewalls and he pulls up a Google page showing firewalls for $2,500+. I tell him I need to check with a relative who is in computer security. He says okay, when you call back use this ext. to speak with me and gives me a "Customer ID #". He stresses "don't tell anyone else this number. If you do they can access you computer..."


We keep trying to reach our nephew and when he calls us back he confirms it was a scam. He says they can't access our Mac desktop, which has our banking info, etc. He asks me to download Teamviewer so he can get into my daughter's laptop to assist, but I can't get a browser up. The Microsoft Alert message is blocking the whole screen. We try workarounds but whatever they put on her computer blocks access to a browser or the outside.


This is where things stand now. Her computer is shut down. It is a two year old machine with Windows 10. At this point, is our only option taking it in to someone? We live in the Bay Area of CA and even with two incomes are stretched thin, with Christmas a month away. Sorry for such a long story. Any help would be appreciated- Evie's dad.

:)

 

Hack Scam

I'm just mentioning this in case anyone else gets one. I went onto a link viaIE11
[seemed respectable - no MSN Warnings] for music downloads, and a
window appeared to say I'd been hacked, this hacker was trying to
hack "their" webpage and I had to call a free number listed to get my
Internet Explorer Unlocked
as "they" had had to lock it for "their safety". Needless to say I didn't call them, and
Win Def didn't find anything.

IE wasn't affected, either. How these scammers are linking to
Users perhaps only a technician can tell. There are numerous Help
Pages on the net to check if one has been hacked, and
they wouldn't have to coax one to phone them if they could penetrate MSN
defences via a web page. I haven't included any details because this particular scam is local.

 

Scams using Microsoft

Microsoft has been warning folks about these scams for some time.

• Avoid scams that use the Microsoft name fraudulently
• Is that call from Microsoft a scam?
• Don’t fall for phony phone tech support
• Avoiding technical support scams

 

Scam phone call fron MS headquaters

In addition to the prior supplied advice/links...

Suggestion to read:

• Avoid tech support
  phone scams

• Avoid scams that use the Microsoft name fraudulently
• https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/wdsi/help/spam-scam-hack-faq

• Tech Support Scams – Help & Resource Page

• Tell Your Relatives: No,
  Microsoft Won’t Call You About Your Computer

• The “Tech Support”
  Scammers Called HTG (So We Had Fun with Them)
• Beware of Phony Tech Support Scams

Video from Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit:

Don't Be a Victim of Tech Support Scams