"Microsoft Support" telephone call help

[stoofur]

Hi Everyone,
My friend recently got one of those "Microsoft Support" telephone calls where they say that you have a fault with the computer. If you allow them to connect remotely they will fix it.

Apparently she did let them connect and they controlled the mouse for a bit. Then they asked for money and she said that she didn't have any. They then hung up the phone.

She is now asking for advice. She has run a virus checker and has a firewall. She has also spoken to her bank and they said to disable remote connection which she has done.

Do any of you have any further advice?

Thanks for your help.

[ChuckFickens]

1) tell her to have a little more common sense in future!

2) run a full scan with malwarebytes while in safe mode.

(I'd personally do a full format and reinstall in this situation)

[ojread2]

oh no :(

change all passwords for other things such as emails etc

Personally, I would also get a full reformat or a new pc

Also your friend may like to know that Microsoft will not call her at home. And in the slightest possibility they did or would, they would never, ever, ever ask to connect to her PC remotely
I hope she hasn't lost anything important

[ChuckFickens]

"or a new pc"

That's a bit drastic!

[VHG]

Further advice....

Apart from friends and relatives NEVER trust anyone who calls you at home

[factor-fiction]

I'm not sure why she has asked her bank for advice.

How did they get remote access- what info did she give? Was it her IP address?

[stoofur]

I am not sure how she gave remote access. I think she asked her bank for advice so that they are aware if anything odd happens through her bank.

I wonder if she can talk to her ISP for advice. Maybe they can change her firewall settings on her router?

[MarkRae]

Did she have anything daft on there like an Excel spreadsheet called Passwords.xls, or Accounts.xls? I've actually seen things like that!

[stoofur]

I hope not Mark.

[MarkRae]

Reason I asked is that their latest technique appears to be that they take control of the machine, run some software which miraculously detects that the machine is infected with malware, offer to repair it for a fee, ask for your credit card details, process a payment of around $80, then proceed to "fix" the problem by downloading malwarebytes, a registry cleaner and a disk defragmenter.

However, the utilities that they download and install only look like what their name suggests they are. In fact, they do things like install zombie software (so that the computer can subsequently be used for spamming) and also trawl the machine for files containing sensitive data which they then send back to the fraudsters. And emptying your credit card account at the same time, of course...

[stoofur]

Hi Mark,
It does sound like it would be a good idea to format the computer doesn't it?

[MarkRae]

I would say so...

[ojread2]

Actually, no I dont think thats drastic at all
Rather a couple of 100 pounds on a new pc than credit taken out in my name, id theft so on and so forth

[KARL]

Those of us who from the outset recognise these calls as attempted fraud want to be able to recognise the calls before we answer them - precisely so we don't waste time on answering. The only way to know in advance is by having Caller ID so one sees the identity of the call's origin (apparently all from South Asia). The UK's phone lines (landlines) and exchanges are owned and operated by BT who decide the standard they are installed and maintained to. The UK is the only country in the world that I know of which has a caller ID system in existence but it is so primitive that calls from abroad are all lumped into a single display format stating "International" while when we call abroad they have a modern system and see our number in full before they lift the receiver. I receive lots of perfectly legitimate calls from abroad but I can't tell the difference between them and this crowd of conmen so have to answer and find out who is calling. The result is that they (the conmen) can call the UK at will and hide behind BT's mask provided for them. I know the police are painfully aware of the situation but the only possible solution is in BT's hands, and they sit on them.

[craft1948]

Why...........I'm sure BT don't do it just to be awkward.

[KARL]

Craft, hopefully not, although nothing is certain, but it is of course in theory cheaper not to invest in a modern diesel when you have a perfectly serviceable steam engine that dates back to the last century. BT have a very firm eye on the bottom line and in my experience have adopted some very dubious practices to trap people into situations where they end up paying more than was contracted - in ordinary life it is called lying but in business it is called being clever. I will be leaving BT after a very long time with them and as a parting gesture I am likely to report them for mis-selling.