Currently, cases of a nasty scam are on the rise again: fake calls allegedly from Microsoft. If your phone rings and a supposed Microsoft employee urgently wants to speak with you, you should be vigilant. The call is made because your computer is allegedly infected with viruses and Trojans.
The best thing to do is hang up immediately! And you should also end any further phone calls right away. The goal of this scam is to trick you into paying for services or installing viruses & Trojans.
"Support Scam" or "Social Hacking" – What is that?
The scam works like this: your computer has allegedly reported to Microsoft that very nasty viruses, malware, Trojans, or even worse plagues have taken root on your computer. You should act quickly, because every minute counts.
The friendly fraudster on the phone also has proof ready for you: you should press the Windows and R keys simultaneously and then type "eventvwr" into the input field.
It then looks like this:
You will then see various warnings and errors from the Windows Event Manager. The alleged Microsoft employee will then offer to repair everything and remove the Trojan remotely for the bargain price of only €120. Or you will be asked to install software so that the fraudster can access your computer.
Support Scam: Please do not accept this offer!!!
End these phone calls immediately! Do not install any software through such contact attempts! Never allow strangers to access your computer! And report the attempted fraud to your local police station!
The warnings and errors displayed there are completely normal and can be found on every computer. They are definitely not proof that something is wrong with your computer! Just try it on your own computer and start the Event Manager yourself. Often, faulty drivers are the cause.
Usually, you will also be threatened that your Windows license will expire, that you will lose your data such as holiday photos and other private belongings, or that you will be liable for damages. Do not believe the scammer! And by the way, you can check the validity of your license yourself at any time with the following command:
slmgr.vbs /dlv
Don't let them unsettle you!
Unfortunately, the number of cyberattacks is constantly increasing. All calls from large companies such as Microsoft, Dell, Vodafone, or 1&1 are definitely fake. None of these companies will call you and issue warnings or even threats. Always hang up immediately and do not get involved in discussions.
By the way: Microsoft definitely does not offer computer monitoring or repairing your computer! On the contrary, Microsoft even has its own department, the "Digital Crimes Unit," to prevent this type of fraud attempt... You can find details directly on Microsoft's website:
https://news.microsoft.com/de-de/tech-support-scam-studie-2018/
Precautions for Support Scams
Perform regular backups of your data! Use current anti-virus software, e.g., from Avast or Avira. In principle, we can also recommend our software Rescue Stick, with which you can create backups or scan your computer for viruses using the Avira engine.
