International phone phish lands in Delaware
In phishing scam, cold calls claim your computer is infected
1:12 p.m., March 7, 2012--University of Delaware Information Technologies (IT) staff report that a computer-related telephone scam has arrived in Delaware.
The scammers make cold calls, claiming to be from Microsoft, a Microsoft partner or another reputable sounding company, then assert that your computer is infected. The scammer’s proposed solution? Pay their company with your credit card, open your computer to them, and let them “fix” your computer over the network.
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“This kind of scam has happened other places,” said Craig Prettyman, IT Client Support and Services (IT-CS&S). “But the scammers are now calling numbers in the 302 area code.”
One Delawarean reported to IT-CS&S that he fell for the scam, charged several hundred dollars to his credit card, and let the caller have Internet access to his computer.
“As soon as he reported the situation, I gave him a CD with utilities downloaded from the McAfee website and instructed him to install fresh anti-virus software as soon as he ran the utilities,” Prettyman reported. “However, he didn’t think to disconnect his computer from the Internet, so as soon as he began running the McAfee utilities, spyware the scammer had installed during their phone conversation alerted the scammer, and our client received another call.”
“This kind of scam tends to target different geographical areas as the scammers try different combinations of country codes and area codes,” said Karl Hassler, IT Network and Systems Services. “Everyone should be vigilant for this kind of scam, but in particular, if your home phone is in area code 302, be aware that these calls are starting to arrive here.”
In response to IT sharing this information with campus computing professionals, other reports of these scam calls being received in Delaware have been confirmed.
Do not trust any unsolicited phone calls or web browser pop-ups related to computer infections (viruses, trojans, spyware, malware).
UD employees with questions about an infected computer should check with their departmental or college technical support staff or contact the IT Support Center (Help Request Form, or 302-831-6000). Students and retirees with questions should contact the IT Support Center.
More information:
- Phishing scams seen at UD
- UD’s Avoid phishing scams
- Using McAfee VirusScan (free for UD faculty, staff, retirees, and students)
- Spyware and malware prevention at UD