Sign in
Microsoft.com
 
Microsoft
 
 
 

locked
Is This A Scam? RRS feed

 > 

  • Question

  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote
    I received a phone call this afternoon telling me that Microsoft Windows have detected a problem with my computer.I worked with him for about an hour, with great difficulty because he had a strong accent that was not easy for me to follow.  To make a long story short he ended up saying my Windows 95 has "expired" and that is my problem.  He added that if  I had him install Windows 7 my computer would speed right up and be as good as new. When I asked if I could not just purchase Windows 7 myself and have it installed he said no, that it had to be done on the internet in connection with what we had been doing.  I asked him to let me call my son and get back to him tomorrow.  His emphatic reply was that it had to be done today. That's where he lost me and I lost him. He had brought up a screen that indicated that I had a virus and all kinds of errors and warnings.   We became disconnected at that point but although I strongly suspect it was a scam , my computer does seem to be a little faster tonight.
    Thursday, November 1, 2012 3:35 AM

Answers

  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote

    Microsoft NEVER cold-calls anyone.

    Microsoft has absolutely no way to know that your computer is infected with anything,  unless you have requested their assistance.

    This call was an attemtpt to get you to part with your personal details and your cash - either as simple fraud, or an attampt at ID theft.

    If you really do have Windows 95, then there is no way that he could have connected to your machine, that I am aware of, so what did he do?

    If he DID manage to take control of your machine, then you should run system checks to ensure that he still doesn't have access.

    Any machine currently running Windows 95 would not be capable of running Windows 7 - so you would have wasted your money (and that's probably why the call ended abruply!)

    Noel Paton | Nil Carborundum Illegitemi | CrashFixPC | The Three-toed Sloth

    Thursday, November 1, 2012 10:33 AM
    Moderator
  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote
    Yes, it is a scam.  Most computers will show warning events in the event log which are temporary and benign.  Most users aren't even aware of these or what they mean.  The scammers take advantage of this to scare people into giving them money to "fix" what doesn't need fixing.  It is a well known scam and has been going on for years.  Since most households have Windows based computers the chances are very high that a cold caller will hit a household with Windows.  There is actually no way anyone can have information about errors on your computer unless you give them that information.  They are just guessing at something that has a high probability of having a grain of truth.

    Colin Barnhorst Windows 7 Ultimate x64 on DIY with 8GB ram.

    Thursday, November 1, 2012 11:31 AM
    Answerer

All replies

  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote

    Microsoft NEVER cold-calls anyone.

    Microsoft has absolutely no way to know that your computer is infected with anything,  unless you have requested their assistance.

    This call was an attemtpt to get you to part with your personal details and your cash - either as simple fraud, or an attampt at ID theft.

    If you really do have Windows 95, then there is no way that he could have connected to your machine, that I am aware of, so what did he do?

    If he DID manage to take control of your machine, then you should run system checks to ensure that he still doesn't have access.

    Any machine currently running Windows 95 would not be capable of running Windows 7 - so you would have wasted your money (and that's probably why the call ended abruply!)

    Noel Paton | Nil Carborundum Illegitemi | CrashFixPC | The Three-toed Sloth

    Thursday, November 1, 2012 10:33 AM
    Moderator
  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote
    Yes, it is a scam.  Most computers will show warning events in the event log which are temporary and benign.  Most users aren't even aware of these or what they mean.  The scammers take advantage of this to scare people into giving them money to "fix" what doesn't need fixing.  It is a well known scam and has been going on for years.  Since most households have Windows based computers the chances are very high that a cold caller will hit a household with Windows.  There is actually no way anyone can have information about errors on your computer unless you give them that information.  They are just guessing at something that has a high probability of having a grain of truth.

    Colin Barnhorst Windows 7 Ultimate x64 on DIY with 8GB ram.

    Thursday, November 1, 2012 11:31 AM
    Answerer
  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote
    what about TechOmania24x7

    • Proposed as answer by Steellady Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:10 PM
    • Unproposed as answer by Steellady Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:10 PM
    • Edited by Steellady Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:11 PM
    • Proposed as answer by Steellady Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:12 PM
    • Unproposed as answer by Noel D PatonModerator Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:43 PM
    Sunday, October 5, 2014 5:09 PM
  • Question
    Sign in to vote
    0
    Sign in to vote
    Technomania24x7 appears to be a scam website.  If they ever call you immediately hang up.

    Please do not read this sentence. Please ignore the previous sentence.

    Monday, October 6, 2014 2:22 PM