Fake ‘Windows’ Tech?

Last month, I received a phone call from a person who identified himself as a security technician for Windows software. He stated that an unusual amount of activity threatening the security of my computer had been detected, and he could show me evidence to substantiate his claim if I would depress click certain keys. So, I did, and he did, pulling up a page of Alerts, Emergency, Attention, yellow triangles containing exclamation marks, all with recent dates. He offered to sell me an update to Windows Defender for $39.95. He requested a debit card, which I provided and he said he needed some time to work on the computer.

Screen went black, but I could detect a Western Union transfer of monies of $275. I questioned him on that, and he said, “Sorry,” and posted a corrected invoice of $39.95 on the computer screen. He gave his name as Mike Wilson with a 210 area phone number.

At this point, I said I did not want to proceed with any sales transaction and hung up. He phoned me two days later and said he had charged my debit card $275 and went into a grand scheme of how I could get it back by paying more cash via MoneyGram to an individual in China. We left it, both yelling into the phone, and he locked my computer.

Beware, it is called extortion, and it is only a phone call away!