Almost. I am not very computer savvy. In fact, I?m somewhat intimidated by the thing, always afraid that I?m going to do the wrong thing and screw it up forever---with the resultant loss of much irreplaceable data.
So, I was a sitting duck last week when, while I was clicking on a very benign web site, I suddenly got an alarm that sounded like the ?Dive!? klaxon on a submarine. I also got an official-looking page on my screen that indicated that it was from Microsoft. It advised me that I had been attacked by a Trojan malware, and that I was in danger of losing all my data if I did not follow the following instructions carefully. Under no circumstances should I continue using my computer or turn it off. Instead I was advised to call an 800 number that would connect me to Microsoft tech support for rescue instructions.<br
Well, I haven?t renewed my Mensa card for many years, so like a little lamb I plunged in and called the number. First unnoticed clue: I got a live ?human? on the second ring?no multi-layered automated response protocol. Second clue: he spoke with some unidentifiable accent. Undeterred, I plunged ahead.
?Jason Stark? asked me to read the information on my screen, after which he expressed alarm and concern and told me that this Trojan thing?not a mere virus, but a far more malevolent demon?had invaded my entire ?network?. Every device connected to my computer, even my modem, was now housing the Trojan.
Fortunately, he said, he believed he could take care of it, but I would have to allow him to get into my computer. ?Oh, please, please!? I said. Once in control, he flicked through various sinister-looking computer-language things, with comments like ?Oh, this is bad!?
Soon he said that this problem was so complex that he would have to confer with his supervisor--another unnoticed warning. He then held the phone away and carried on a conversation with ?Ray?. When he came back to me he said that they had agreed upon a plan of attack: they would first do a ?manual? restore and then follow it up with a permanent fix. To this point I was still convinced that ?Jordan?, the Microsoft expert, was my best friend. He had not once mentioned cost, so I had not noticed all the red flags. I need to point out that during most of this exchange that shrill alarm klaxon was still whooping, increasing my tension and anxiety. Anything, anything, to shut off that noise.
He had his fish on the line, now to set the hook: they would perform the manual fix, but it would be pointless without the permanent fix. He offered a one-year fix for $349, a three-year for $499, and a five-year for only $699. Even now, I still did not smell the rat. Instead, I simply said that I would not, could not pay that much to fix my computer---I would just throw it away. At this point he began to go into his hard sell, and only then did I begin to see the light. I just hung up the phone.
I still had his junk on my screen, and I assumed that he still had full control of my computer. My first reaction was to call my credit card and put it on hold. Second, I called the ATT computer tech number I keep in my phone. The nice ATT lady told me to turn my computer off. Then she told me to unplug my modem for several seconds, then plug it back in. This, she said, would reset my IP address, and even if ?Jordan? did try to get back in my computer, he couldn?t find the new address.
She told me that the website I had clicked on when the alarm went off had nothing to do with the event: the scammers? computers are endlessly searching for IP addresses that are in use at the moment, and when it finds one it latches on and sets the scam in motion.
I apologize for this being so long, but if this information helps anyone else to avoid being robbed, it will have served its purpose.
So, I was a sitting duck last week when, while I was clicking on a very benign web site, I suddenly got an alarm that sounded like the ?Dive!? klaxon on a submarine. I also got an official-looking page on my screen that indicated that it was from Microsoft. It advised me that I had been attacked by a Trojan malware, and that I was in danger of losing all my data if I did not follow the following instructions carefully. Under no circumstances should I continue using my computer or turn it off. Instead I was advised to call an 800 number that would connect me to Microsoft tech support for rescue instructions.<br
Well, I haven?t renewed my Mensa card for many years, so like a little lamb I plunged in and called the number. First unnoticed clue: I got a live ?human? on the second ring?no multi-layered automated response protocol. Second clue: he spoke with some unidentifiable accent. Undeterred, I plunged ahead.
?Jason Stark? asked me to read the information on my screen, after which he expressed alarm and concern and told me that this Trojan thing?not a mere virus, but a far more malevolent demon?had invaded my entire ?network?. Every device connected to my computer, even my modem, was now housing the Trojan.
Fortunately, he said, he believed he could take care of it, but I would have to allow him to get into my computer. ?Oh, please, please!? I said. Once in control, he flicked through various sinister-looking computer-language things, with comments like ?Oh, this is bad!?
Soon he said that this problem was so complex that he would have to confer with his supervisor--another unnoticed warning. He then held the phone away and carried on a conversation with ?Ray?. When he came back to me he said that they had agreed upon a plan of attack: they would first do a ?manual? restore and then follow it up with a permanent fix. To this point I was still convinced that ?Jordan?, the Microsoft expert, was my best friend. He had not once mentioned cost, so I had not noticed all the red flags. I need to point out that during most of this exchange that shrill alarm klaxon was still whooping, increasing my tension and anxiety. Anything, anything, to shut off that noise.
He had his fish on the line, now to set the hook: they would perform the manual fix, but it would be pointless without the permanent fix. He offered a one-year fix for $349, a three-year for $499, and a five-year for only $699. Even now, I still did not smell the rat. Instead, I simply said that I would not, could not pay that much to fix my computer---I would just throw it away. At this point he began to go into his hard sell, and only then did I begin to see the light. I just hung up the phone.
I still had his junk on my screen, and I assumed that he still had full control of my computer. My first reaction was to call my credit card and put it on hold. Second, I called the ATT computer tech number I keep in my phone. The nice ATT lady told me to turn my computer off. Then she told me to unplug my modem for several seconds, then plug it back in. This, she said, would reset my IP address, and even if ?Jordan? did try to get back in my computer, he couldn?t find the new address.
She told me that the website I had clicked on when the alarm went off had nothing to do with the event: the scammers? computers are endlessly searching for IP addresses that are in use at the moment, and when it finds one it latches on and sets the scam in motion.
I apologize for this being so long, but if this information helps anyone else to avoid being robbed, it will have served its purpose.
