More and more clients are reporting phone calls that follow the same general script. The caller, usually nearly unintelligible due to a thick accent, states the call is from Microsoft or some other computer giant, because the user's computer has been compromised. Would the user kindly allow a remote connection so we may fix your computer? Get real.
Never ever fall for this. Microsoft doesn't do this, HP doesn't, Lenovo doesn't, not Samsung, no one does this. Think back to your last support call and remember how long it took to get someone on the phone, and then what happened when the call was dropped? How many transfers did it take? How many times did you have to prove who you were before they would talk to you? How many explanations of the problem were required? Customer service starts with the customer reaching out for assistance. Vendors don't have the time or the infrastructure or the desire to monitor their products for failure, they would much rather just sell a new one.
Then who called? Someone who really hopes you're a rube and will grant remote access. Stories abound of this type of call, and it seems most people are wise enough to smell the rat. Others might not have been so wise, but they haven't been nearly as prolific in posting their experiences. If their computer still works to allow them to do so, I suppose. So what's the scam? Think about it, what kind of personal data is in your computer? Financial info? Credit card statements? Bank logins? Definitely private, whatever it is, and not intended for sharing. Full remote access to your computer should always be something instigated by the user with trusted providers, never an event that takes place as the result of an incoming call from Timbuktu.
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