Listening to the Voices in My Head

I don't know why, but I have been enjoying these scam buster videos. Again, I can see how someone not computer savvy could be fooled with the scammer's antics.

You get hit with a very realistic looking Windows/Microsoft page, with a warning, saying your computer had been blocked, and Call this number! Don't try closing the window because it will cause irreparable harm to your computer. They of course provide a toll free number for you to call. They will help you get to either fastsupport dot com, or other website, and have you download and install GoToAssist or LogMeIn. After this happens, they are remotely connected to your computer.

They open Event Viewer, and claim all the alerts and errors are spyware or viruses.

Then they open MSINFO, which will show things have been stopped, claiming spyware or viruses have stopped them.

Then, they will open an elevated command prompt, and run dir :/s or the TREE command, saying they are scanning the computer. If you listen carefully you will hear them typing something and then OMIGOD NO, in red letters it will say at the command prompt, you have XXX amount of viruses.

Next step, they will type in NETSTAT, and it will list your IP and every placed you're currently connected. Some of those addresses with be 'foreign', aka not your computer's IP address, and tell you that this is proof hackers are connected to your computer.

Then they will open NOTEPAD and list a bunch of fake services they will provide, cleaning the system, install free security/virus software, but charge anywhere from $99.99 to sometimes over $1000.

If you question them, they will often run the SYSKEY command, which they will use to change the system password. If you don't pay the money, they won't give you the password. And if you don't have a recent back up, or calling them on a Virtual Machine, you can be stuck for it.

Again, you might roll your eyes and say "How could anyone be so stupid?", it's not stupidity, it's not knowing.

Scamming is illegal, no matter where the scammers are located, it's illegal.

The "Car Accident" Scammers are back! Here's the phone number they called me twice from: 02 8006 9329

Yes, I had a play with them, so they called me twice.

I asked "Is this about the accident with our Green Kia wagon?"

She said she only had details that I had been in a car accident, that wasn't my fault.

"Well, if you can't tell me my name and the make and model of my car, I'm not giving you any personal information!".

She said she would have her 'supervisor' call me back.

He called, claimed his name was "Jordan". Same song and dance. Same reply, from me, and when he said he could call me back tomorrow with the information.. meh.

"Guy, bored now, so I'm not going to play anymore. I haven't had a car accident in over 25 years, and I know this is a scam, and am going to broadcast this number far and wide."