Telephone scam

Nevi

Level 11
Thread author
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Well-known
Apr 7, 2016
500
Yesteday I was called by a gentleman with such a thick accent, it was hard for me to understand him. He introduced himself as "Microsoft employee". "We can see on our servers, that your computer is about to be hacked"! LOL really? I was thinking "new tech support scam".
At that time I knew more or less this was BS, but I wanted to hear some more.
"So please sir, open your computer and we will fix this very fast"! That was enough so I hung up and blocked the number.

In the afternoon my phone rang again from another number. When I took it, a thick accent greeted me (sigh), and started to talk about Microsoft again. When the woman (They are diverse,lol) started her BS, I said "but hey, I dont have a computer!!!"
2 or 3 seconds with complet silence, and then she hung up, and I blocked the number.

I have not seen or heard about this one before. But they will probably get some new computer owners. Their biggest flaw, is the thick accent. If you know just a little bit about computer fraud, they give themself away just by talking.

So if someone with a heavy accent (Africa-India I simply cant tell) call you "from Microsoft" save some time, just hang up and block the number.😂😂
 

jogs

Level 22
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Nov 19, 2012
1,112
I have got this type of call regarding bank cards, they would say 'Your card has been blocked'.
I would talk with them as if I am a person having very little knowledge about handling these things (cards). Finally they will ask me to take out my card and then tell them the numbers :)
I would say 123456....
It really gets them pissed off. :ROFLMAO:
 

ErzCrz

Level 21
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Aug 19, 2019
1,003
I get this rubbish a few times a year. This morning, we even had a call from "British Telecom Technical Department" clearly someone from India and we haven't used BT in years. Another one to the block list despite being members of TPS (Telephone preference service). It's probably because we recently renewed our pet insurance and used a comparison site :S Point is, if your not expecting a call, just put the phone down.
 

Viking

Level 26
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Oct 2, 2011
1,531
I get these fake "we detected a virus on your computer" scams all the time claiming to be from Microsoft.

I have blocked so many numbers that I am unable to block any more.
 
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Antus67

Level 9
Verified
Well-known
Nov 3, 2019
413
This is a common occurrence as I've receive a least 3 calls in the last month or so. I have a bit of fun with them when they ask me to allow them access to my computer I tell them you've reached the local police station your call is being traced..............than click on the phone and silence.
 

oldschool

Level 81
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Mar 29, 2018
7,043
I speak "Chinese" or some other made-up language (I am quite adept at faking languages!) depending on perceived accent of the caller, and they go silent, dazed and confused.😮 Problem solved. On the other hand, we have a friend whose mother was taken for $38,000 not long ago.
 

show-Zi

Level 36
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Jan 28, 2018
2,463
“Your cash card data is leaking. A few hours later the police will visit you to hear about the situation ''
A few hours later, a person called a policeman visits his home and confiscates the card as evidence on the spot.

In Japan, this type of scam has become a daily routine for several years.
 

Fuzzy_Bunny

Level 4
Sep 19, 2019
148
some funny youtube channels
 

RKRN3

Level 3
Verified
Well-known
Sep 6, 2019
122
I play a game and have Canadian friends in my guild. They too receive spam calls just like you all beautifully described here. However, being an Indian, why haven't I or anyone in my family received such calls yet? Is it because of DND service?
 

show-Zi

Level 36
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Well-known
Jan 28, 2018
2,463
The yakuza is a controlled and illegal group, but the group that carries out this kind of fraud is a form in which most people, except for a few people led by a leader, are temporarily recruited. The actual contact person may be arrested on the spot, but the chain of command is in a pyramid shape, and it seems to be structured so that it is not easy to reach the central person of the crime.
It is somewhat similar to Tor's transmission structure.
 

TRS-80

Level 1
Aug 16, 2019
46
G'day @show-Zi and everyone,

In Australia we've been dealing with an increasing number of attacks, scams and the like.

The majority I've had involvement with are of “Russian” origin. They usually route through Indian or Brazillian VPN and TOR connections.

South American scams and attacks continue to increase.


**DO NOT REPEAT THESE ACTIONS!**

I once had an old Win7 machine which was in the throws of death anyway. I only used it to browse the Web.

Sure enough, one day, quite a few years back, up popped a full screen “Call Microsoft Support.....” window. Oh, I forgot, there was beeping that implied urgency.

Apparently I'd been infected with “The Porn Virus.” In BIG RED words.

I'd been nowhere near any Porn sites on that machine. Period!

I was aware of these scams, but thought I'd play with them. I actually phoned them, purely to see how they behaved. I had a landline with an unlisted(hidden) number. The call was answered by a South American sounding voice that could have just been woken from the dead. I was asked to “hold.”

There was an extremely loud “beep” on the phone line. It then began ringing again.

Eventually an Indian sounding man answered the call. He went on to advise me of the seriousness of my infection; always over-acting, trying to instill fear and urgency. After some time passed he returned to sales mode. I was told that they could have a technician remote into my system and repair the “damage” caused by the “vicious virus.” That would carry a cost of USD$375 for a one off clean. A three year “Security Umbrella” could protect my electronic devices on any connection, anywhere in the world and, on any machine! The cost for that would be USD$2700.

I stopped and realised the laptop I was using was finished anyway. He was informed they could remote in, however, if I was not satisfied with their “One off clean,” there would be no payment. To my amazement, he agreed!

Next I was put on to a security “expert” who would make my computer run again! I was on hold for a matter of seconds.

This group was calling themselves “Live Technologies Incorporated.” They used LogMeIn Rescue(LMIR) missing only the Microsoft logo. Thus, the due PIN login process followed.

First up they got rid of the fake Microsoft message telling me to phone them.

Next I was shown Command Prompt directory listings of a couple of Temp folders showing all the “infectors.”

Next they ran JRT. It found COOKIES and a PuP.

She then spent time installing their version of a RAT. All up, I reckon I spent maybe 10 minutes with the “Security Expert.” Once she was done she asked me if I was happy “the job.” I immediately retorted with NO, I AM NOT!

She started to get a little panicky, eventually telling me I'd have to speak to her supervisor, Sean.

Sean picked up his phone very quickly. He demanded that I repeat my credit card details to him. I advised him of our arrangement that I'd pay them IF I was happy with their cleaning. Also, that I had never given him credit card details as I don't have one. He became increasingly pushy. I told him if he could provide me a business address I would post him a cheque. The language travelling along the phone line from my end now became increasingly “blue.”

In the end I just got fed up listening to his idiocy. I asked him to insert his head into his backside and take a deep breath. That was the end of the conversation.

I spent the next couple of hours watching my old laptop connecting to a large number of remote servers.

I wasted plenty of their time & effort. Their operations were temporarily interrupted. They incurred all costs other than my time.

I had a laugh and, vented my frustrations on the poor sod.

I'd had enough. The next day I put a pick through the laptop.

Please don't try doing the same thing. I was lucky enough to have a few spare routers and gateways lying around. These must be replaced(in my opinion) due to the possibility of Advanced Network Infectors.

I hope this brings a little more of the way these people work. Also, hope it gives a few of you a laugh.

Cheers!
 

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