Windows put a loud message on computer that I had been hacked.
 

I am back up but have no idea what actually happened with that. I was looking at a quote by a writer and then my computer starts blaring that I should not shut it down as it noted suspicious activity.

The guy I called said I had been hacked by someone in Beijing. To my knowledge I know no one there.

It happened while I could not get on Talk of the Villages today.

Wanted to make a note of it. I have no knowledge about what they were doing other than what the guy on the phone said they had been doing. Which I will keep to myself.

I hope you didn't dial any number that popped up on the screen. I REALLY hope you didn't type any commands that the guy at that number asked you to type.

The more attention-getting the message was (pop ups, flashing, large letters, blaring sound) the more likely it was an attempt to get you to dial a number and give up personal information.

If I saw something like that I would:
- Disconnect from the internet (disable wifi or unplug the network cable)
- Close all applications, particularly my web browser
- Run anti-virus and anti-malware packages
- Open the web browser again and probably clear recent history and cache
- Reconnect to the internet
- Avoid that particular web page

The loud message was most likely not from Windows or Microsoft.

Calling back the number is risky because you could be making an expensive international call without knowing it. If so, you will be charged for the call, and your phone provider cannot remove the charge because of international agreements. The best thing to do is to turn off the computer immediately and reboot.

I did not give them much information. Just name.

I was very suspicious. I just wanted the loud stuff to shut off.

And I did not type anything. Just let it make noise.

I agree, but I have never had an issue if I just rebooted the computer.

I did turn it off. But it was still doing it.

I will check the number I called to see if it was legit.

You may need to hold down the power button for about 15 seconds to totally power off, or unplug it.

The beginning of a hack attempt
 

That flashy message was the beginning of a hack attempt.

BBB Scam Alert: Need tech support? Be careful which number you call

Does seem that was what it was.

Looks like my Windows blocked whatever was going on.

You need to disconnect from the network and run a Malware and Advanced scan with the antivirus software.

Stay protected with Windows Security - Microsoft Support


This may take overnight to complete depending on your system.

One thing you can do to greatly limit your exposure to hacks is to quit using Chrome and switch to Firefox, with the "Noscript" add-in.

The only way a hacker can do anything on your computer is when procedural code like Javascript is running. HTML is merely a markup language, it does not execute. Even if you click a hacked link, it's the javascript on that hacker's page that gets you, not the link itself.

The "Noscript" add-in selectively prevents Javascript from running. It's possible to turn off Javascript in Chrome, but it's practically a hidden feature, and it's a sledgehammer compared to the fine control you get with NoScript. With NoScript, you can turn off Javascript entirely (and be amazed at how many sites don't need it at all to be functional). But you can also set it up to only allow scripts that originate from the trusted page you are viewing, while turning off 3rd-party javascripts. 3rd-party scripts are the source of most hacks, and incidentally also the source of nearly all advertising and popups. Turning off 3rd party scripts does often prevent forms from working, but if you are on a site that you trust enough to fill out a form, you can enable all scripts for just that one tab, though a simple selection on the Noscript menu at the top of the page.

Chrome is a proprietary browser owned by Google. Google can and does anything they want with it. Their entire business model is collecting and selling their user's privacy. Firefox, on the other hand, is "Open Source". That means that programmers all over the world can see the code and sound the alarm if they see it's been hacked or if the company is doing something with it they shouldn't.

Controlling who can execute code on your computer is a nuisance. It seems outrageous that we even have to go to such lengths to prevent it. But at least it's still possible, for as long as Firefox still exists.

I use the Microsoft Edge browser with Windows 11. I have received a few of these loud hacking messages. I turned off the computer, rebooted, and everything was fine.

You can use NoScript on Chrome too, it's available on GooglePlay for download and installation to the browser.

Just keep in mind, if you use websites that require javascript to function, those websites will cease to work if you have NoScript running.

Most of the sites I use, use javascript.

I ran some kind of advanced scan that took 15 minutes to do.