Indi
Loc: L. I., NY, Palm Beach Cty when it's cold.
I just received a strange phone call from (Supposedly) a Microsoft rep/agent.
A gentleman with a distinct Indian accent called a little while ago. He told me that my computer was infected with malware and/or viruses and he was calling from MS to help me. He told me to press the Windows key and type something like eventxxx at the prompt. I told him that I was very leery about typing anything in and running any program at someone who purportedly represents Microsoft.
He then told me that he knew my unique ID number and told me to write it down. He the told me to run MSCONFIG from the prompt and type in ASSOC which would match the number he gave me beforehand and prove he was legit. While he was talking to me I looked at the reports from Malwarebytes and Norton and they showed nothing.
I then told him that I very reluctant to do anything he suggested via a "phone call from Microsoft."
I said that unless I received an official email from MS, I wasn't going to run any programs from someone who made a personal call to me.
He said goodbye and hung up.
I then decided to back check the number he called me from and the app said it was an invalid number.
Has anything similar happened to any of you?
What are your thoughts?
Indi wrote:
I just received a strange phone call from (Supposedly) a Microsoft rep/agent.
A gentleman with a distinct Indian accent called a little while ago. He told me that my computer was infected with malware and/or viruses and he was calling from MS to help me. He told me to press the Windows key and type something like eventxxx at the prompt. I told him that I was very leery about typing anything in and running any program at someone who purportedly represents Microsoft.
He then told me that he knew my unique ID number and told me to write it down. He the told me to run MSCONFIG from the prompt and type in ASSOC which would match the number he gave me beforehand and prove he was legit. While he was talking to me I looked at the reports from Malwarebytes and Norton and they showed nothing.
I then told him that I very reluctant to do anything he suggested via a "phone call from Microsoft."
I said that unless I received an official email from MS, I wasn't going to run any programs from someone who made a personal call to me.
He said goodbye and hung up.
I then decided to back check the number he called me from and the app said it was an invalid number.
Has anything similar happened to any of you?
What are your thoughts?
I just received a strange phone call from (Suppose... (
show quote)
Don't go for it, that is a scam that's been going around for a very long time!!!!
CLF
Loc: Raleigh, NC
You did the right thing. He could have got control of your PC and who knows where it would go from there. MS or any other valid company would always tell you not to give out any info to people who call you. If you call them, it is totally different and even then be careful what you give up.
Greg
Indi wrote:
I just received a strange phone call from (Supposedly) a Microsoft rep/agent.
A gentleman with a distinct Indian accent called a little while ago. He told me that my computer was infected with malware and/or viruses and he was calling from MS to help me. He told me to press the Windows key and type something like eventxxx at the prompt. I told him that I was very leery about typing anything in and running any program at someone who purportedly represents Microsoft.
He then told me that he knew my unique ID number and told me to write it down. He the told me to run MSCONFIG from the prompt and type in ASSOC which would match the number he gave me beforehand and prove he was legit. While he was talking to me I looked at the reports from Malwarebytes and Norton and they showed nothing.
I then told him that I very reluctant to do anything he suggested via a "phone call from Microsoft."
I said that unless I received an official email from MS, I wasn't going to run any programs from someone who made a personal call to me.
He said goodbye and hung up.
I then decided to back check the number he called me from and the app said it was an invalid number.
Has anything similar happened to any of you?
What are your thoughts?
I just received a strange phone call from (Suppose... (
show quote)
Yep. He told me my Windows computer was infected with a virus. I told him to F off. I'm on a Mac. These calls are based on probability and gullibility. If you follow their directions they'll have full access to your machine without you knowing it.
Indi wrote:
I just received a strange phone call from (Supposedly) a Microsoft rep/agent.
A gentleman with a distinct Indian accent called a little while ago. He told me that my computer was infected with malware and/or viruses and he was calling from MS to help me. He told me to press the Windows key and type something like eventxxx at the prompt. I told him that I was very leery about typing anything in and running any program at someone who purportedly represents Microsoft.
He then told me that he knew my unique ID number and told me to write it down. He the told me to run MSCONFIG from the prompt and type in ASSOC which would match the number he gave me beforehand and prove he was legit. While he was talking to me I looked at the reports from Malwarebytes and Norton and they showed nothing.
I then told him that I very reluctant to do anything he suggested via a "phone call from Microsoft."
I said that unless I received an official email from MS, I wasn't going to run any programs from someone who made a personal call to me.
He said goodbye and hung up.
I then decided to back check the number he called me from and the app said it was an invalid number.
Has anything similar happened to any of you?
What are your thoughts?
I just received a strange phone call from (Suppose... (
show quote)
Nope, but it was obviously a scam / fraud attempt. Scary crap!
mariak
Loc: Las Cruces, New Mexico USA
Indi wrote:
I just received a strange phone call from (Supposedly) a Microsoft rep/agent.
A gentleman with a distinct Indian accent called a little while ago. He told me that my computer was infected with malware and/or viruses and he was calling from MS to help me. He told me to press the Windows key and type something like eventxxx at the prompt. I told him that I was very leery about typing anything in and running any program at someone who purportedly represents Microsoft.
He then told me that he knew my unique ID number and told me to write it down. He the told me to run MSCONFIG from the prompt and type in ASSOC which would match the number he gave me beforehand and prove he was legit. While he was talking to me I looked at the reports from Malwarebytes and Norton and they showed nothing.
I then told him that I very reluctant to do anything he suggested via a "phone call from Microsoft."
I said that unless I received an official email from MS, I wasn't going to run any programs from someone who made a personal call to me.
He said goodbye and hung up.
I then decided to back check the number he called me from and the app said it was an invalid number.
Has anything similar happened to any of you?
What are your thoughts?
I just received a strange phone call from (Suppose... (
show quote)
Yes, I get about 3 of those calls a week. I just say I don't have a computer and hang up. They will keep calling.
mariak
Sylvias
Loc: North Yorkshire England
It happens in the UK too, we get them every week, you can be rude to them but they still call back. I have a friend who fell for their scam and gave them her Bank Card number, fortunately she got her money back from the Bank.
The Police have tracked some of these people down, prosecuted and they have been jailed, but there are a number of them operating in the UK. It has been going on over here for a few years now!
I usually string them along for a bit, just to f with them. It's been a few weeks since they've called.
I get them 2 or 3 times a year also. I just inform him that I charge $1000 an hour to talk to anyone about anything!
hi i'm from microsoft, honest
now if you just type windows and r and type cmd we can just verify your consumer licence id
if you type
assoc your licence number should be
CLSID 888DCA60-FC0A-11CF-8F0F-00C04FD7D062 is that correct , good its the right system.
now just type verify what does it say? Verify is off thats bad very bad you can't install any security updates at all...
Now small confession i'm not from microsoft and 888DCA60-FC0A-11CF-8F0F-00C04FD7D062 is not unique to your computer either.
Sounds good doesn't it. Microsoft don't particularly care if your computers infected or not and they certainly don't ring up individuals to tell them they are infected!
That little script was based on this page
http://securelist.com/blog/incidents/33734/trying-to-unmask-the-fake-microsoft-support-scammers-17/So when you get a call ignore it , hangup and do not follow any instructions they give you.
Hope this helps, be safe
Yeah, I got that call.I played with the poor soul for a while until I finally called him an A-hole and told him I was on a Mac.
How can anybody fall for this?
I get them every couple weeks and I just hang up. The last one I received was yesterday, so I decided to play a bit.
I told him that I did not have a computer and he said: not even a laptop? I said that I had nothing and he thanked me and hung up. Maybe I'll get dropped from one list.
Indi wrote:
I just received a strange phone call from (Supposedly) a Microsoft rep/agent.
A gentleman with a distinct Indian accent called a little while ago. He told me that my computer was infected with malware and/or viruses and he was calling from MS to help me. He told me to press the Windows key and type something like eventxxx at the prompt. I told him that I was very leery about typing anything in and running any program at someone who purportedly represents Microsoft.
He then told me that he knew my unique ID number and told me to write it down. He the told me to run MSCONFIG from the prompt and type in ASSOC which would match the number he gave me beforehand and prove he was legit. While he was talking to me I looked at the reports from Malwarebytes and Norton and they showed nothing.
I then told him that I very reluctant to do anything he suggested via a "phone call from Microsoft."
I said that unless I received an official email from MS, I wasn't going to run any programs from someone who made a personal call to me.
He said goodbye and hung up.
I then decided to back check the number he called me from and the app said it was an invalid number.
Has anything similar happened to any of you?
What are your thoughts?
I just received a strange phone call from (Suppose... (
show quote)
Yes, I am familiar with this. It is a ridiculous scam and their whole pitch collapses under the most basic questioning. It is a trick to get access to people's computers. Infuriating.
Mike
My wife fell into that trap ONCE. She now knows more betterest. I still get calls, but thanks to Caller Block, no more.
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