Beware phone scam: We fix PC problems

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#524583 22-Sep-2011 12:57

Thought that might have been the case.
Amazing how MS let it go on for so long.

freitasm

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#524584 22-Sep-2011 12:58

To be fair, Microsoft probably wouldn't know. And obviously the only thing they can do is remove this company's partner status really...

It's not like people were able to pinpoint the origin of these scam calls - also note there are other companies doing the same.

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blakamin

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#524603 22-Sep-2011 13:25

True, but people had tried to narrow it down as far back as 09...
If my worldwide tech support were doing that, I'd nail them ASAP!

This was my next question (and obviously why they couldn't nail it), "How many others do it?"

You'd think there wouldn't be that many companies capable of running a scam so huge, the phone calls alone show that they had some money/size behind them at some stage, and should have woken up some major corporations. Not to mention the tech abilities... It's not like it could be run out of a shack in Mumbai!

Actually, where's our mate with his indian ISP these days? ;P

kfella2000

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#524724 22-Sep-2011 18:27

Being on 2talk I managed to get their caller ID number and put it in my call block list. Going by the call records on my account they tried to ring me for most of the first 13 days of this month and kept getting a busy tone and so it looks like they gave up trying after the that.

AstonAMV

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#586071 24-Feb-2012 08:33

Looks like these guys are back, this time they are using a new company name,
same bad phone line and voice as all the videos on youtube
(http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=windows+virus+scam&oq=windows+virus+scam&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=3&gs_upl=242857l247192l0l247615l18l16l0l3l3l0l490l1564l2-3.1.1l5l0)

An Indian sounding women calls says she works for a small US based computer support company that works for Microsoft.
She then goes on to say that your computer has been sending them information about it being infected with a virus, and Microsoft has hired them to contact every person running windows to inform them that there computer is infected with a virus.
When I said I have up to date virus protection software she said that they don't pick up that particular virus.

They then get you to go to the computer management window and say all the warning and errors in the log are corrupted windows files, and if you don't fix it now your computer will continue to be corrupted.

She then passes you on to her supervisor who tries to get you to log in to www.support.me
at this point my dinner was ready so I told him I knew he was a scammer and hung up the phone.

xpd

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#586081 24-Feb-2012 08:43

Still havent had this call.... even moved districts and changed my number ;)

XPD / Gavin

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AstonAMV

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#586085 24-Feb-2012 08:53

We'll they used my surname when calling, so I am assuming they are working there way through the white pages and reached surnames beginning with D last night.

dan

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#586088 24-Feb-2012 08:57

C.. i got a call from them last night, its been a while, also used last name when calling.

i was bored so wasted 40 mins of there time, PC kept bluescreening you see then my internet kept going down, bummer.

I decided to end it when we got to the stage where they were trying to get me to run logmein.

xpd

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#586091 24-Feb-2012 09:07

If they called me at work, think Ill just get my revenge by transferring them to a random helpdesk somewhere.... or put my workmates iPhone4S next to the phone - they can talk to Siri :D

XPD / Gavin

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freitasm

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#586187 24-Feb-2012 12:17

I still have the virtual machine running Windows XP to get this... but no call for me!

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stevenz

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#586190 24-Feb-2012 12:26

I've also got a snapshotted virtual machine sitting there waiting for them to call so I can mess with them. Nothing so far though, maybe it's a downside of an unlisted number? :(

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Shoes2468

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#586207 24-Feb-2012 12:55

freitasm: I still have the virtual machine running Windows XP to get this... but no call for me!

Great idea, I was thinking of doing the same thing, but they rang before I had a chance to set one up.

robjg63

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#586233 24-Feb-2012 13:45

I would have to say that after getting driven crazy with these dumb 'fix you computer' calls and other unsolicited 'survey' / cold call sales etc last year, we ended up getting our number pulled from the phone book listings.

It wasnt a decision we made lightly but I know they are harvesting the phone book....

Anyway - we do seem to have had quite a drop off in these spam calls so the above seems to have worked.

I have heard of other people doing this as well. I suppose it will end up with nearly everyone being unlisted and the phone book dying a slow death.

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler

stevenz

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#586268 24-Feb-2012 14:24

Friends had to change their number as they were getting nightly calls at 3am from Nigera as their number was being used as part of a toll-calling scam. They were not amused.

Their number was unlisted too, so either someone got an account hacked, or they're just pulling numbers out of the ether.

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#586526 25-Feb-2012 05:25

I have a theory on this matter and I don't believe it is just a matter of harvesting the phone book for
potential victims.
"Unlisted Numbers" are also being called to "fix your computer problems".
I believe that since much of Our personal information is being attended to by Call Centers such as in the
Philippines and Egypt, this info is then sold on to a 3rd party for example in Calcutta, India, or some individuals in Call Centres are part of the information chain for dubious purposes.

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