Scammers in guise of Microsoft
Malware risk for PC users
THEY know where you live and they call you at home. This is the tactic used by “spoofing” scammers, people claiming to be from Microsoft, who tell you that your PC or laptop is under threat from malicious software (malware).
They promise to help you fix it, but end up infecting your computer.
Anneliese Burgess said she received a call on April 4 from someone claiming to be from a Microsoft call centre.
She was initially sceptical because she uses an Apple Mac, but also uses Microsoft’s Office for Mac, so thought he could be calling about that software.
“He was so convincing, he was so professional-sounding,” said Burgess.
He also had her physical address and contacted her on her landline, which she said made it more believable.
He told her: “There’s malware on your computer and we need to help you and we’re going to talk you through how to fix this.”
According to Microsoft’s chief security adviser in South Africa, Dr Khomotso Kganyago, this scam first emerged around this time last year.
“But it has popped up again recently,” he said.
The scammers then persuade you to download malware (malicious software) on to your computer, which allows them to take control of it remotely.
“The cold caller will then spend some time on the computer, trying to demonstrate where the ‘problems’ are and, in the process, convinces the victim to pay a fee for a service that will fix the computer,” said Kganyago.
Other online forums suggest the malware can also record keystrokes, thus allowing the scammers to see your passwords and bank account details.
Burgess eventually realised something was not right and hung up.
She posted what happened on Facebook and soon 10 of her friends had shared their experiences of the same scam.
“Cybercriminals often use public-phone directories to harvest consumer names and personal information, thereby garnering consumer trust in the sheer level of knowledge they appear to offer about them,” Kganyago said.