Phone Call From "Windows" Heads Up

[downeaster]

We received three calls in the last few days and caller with strong accent claims to be from "Windows" and they have detected messages from our computer indicating malicious activity. His instruction are to go to my computer and he will give me instructions on how to fix the problem.

I assume he will gain access to my computer and cause serious problems.

This scam seems to resurface frequently.

Caller ID, "Unknown Name 3-567-252-8512".

I asked a few leading questions and he kept going back to a prepared script.

[redwitch]

Yup, very common scam. Think it's been around for as long as the web has existed. It's usually used to put a virus on your computer that tracks everywhere you go and collect passwords, credit card numbers and the like. Not a good thing with all of the online shopping and banking.

[2BNTV]

I received a call from someone who did not even identify themselves and said they detected suspicious activity on PC as we speak.

My reply was, "buzzzzzz". I hung up immediately.

[Shimpy]

I got the same call about a month ago from the same hardly understandable accent. He wanted to me to type and enter something. When I said "no" he got angry and said my computer would shut down in 3 days. It hasn't happened.

[Villager Joyce]

My husband was in one of the moods when we got the call. He told them we were sending those signals to Mars and to let them go -- we did not authorize them to stop our signals. The man on the phone didn't know what to say. We considered it a win for us. We had fun either way.