- #Tech utilities scam how to#
- #Tech utilities scam install#
- #Tech utilities scam software#
- #Tech utilities scam series#
PSE&G never requires payment with a prepaid card and does not offer bill discounts. The caller alerts you that, because of your good bill-paying history, you're eligible for a bill reduction or discount but you must provide information first. You're given a phone number to call back that, when called, may sound similar to PSE&G's automated call system. The caller informs you that you require a new meter and demands a deposit before the installation can occur (PSE&G does not require a deposit for a new meter installation). The caller threatens to shut off your service and demands an immediate payment by cash, pre-paid card, or digital money transfer apps.
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You receive a call from what looks like PSE&G on your caller ID. If a tech support scams tries to victimize you (or you’ve already been victimized), file a complaint with the FTC.PSE&G reminds customers to be alert to scams – particularly scams demanding immediate bill payment via a prepaid credit card or digital money transfer, or offering a bill discount due to a good payment history.Never give a stranger remote access to your machine.
#Tech utilities scam how to#
If that doesn’t work, try a web search for tips on how to remove it or contact the manufacturer of your antivirus program.
#Tech utilities scam software#
(Try a web search with the name of the software and the word “reviews.” Download programs only from websites you know and trust).
#Tech utilities scam install#
Don’t install software from unknown third parties unless you’re sure it’s safe.Make sure your computer security software is up to date.It doesn’t matter how legitimate the notice looks or that your phone’s caller ID says the call is from Microsoft or any other well-known company. If you see a pop-up or receive a phone call warning about a virus or other malware on your computer, don’t respond.You’ll also find tips from Malwarebytes Labs. The FTC has devoted a Web page to tech support scams, with advice on how to spot them and what to do if you’ve been victimized. Instead of using pop-up ads, some tech support schemes employ telemarketers who call would-be victims claiming to be a tech support specialists, says the Better Business Bureau, which issued an alert in May about the ongoing problem, which it says not only can cost victims money but also can result in the theft of sensitive data stored on their machines.īogus virus warning pop-ups also can come from unsafe software downloaded from an unfamiliar website or that installed when the user clicked on a dangerous email attachment. “People still need to watch out for these scams,” he says. But similar scams are likely to continue, operating in the U.S. This is the latest of several cases the FTC has brought in connection with tech support scams since 2010, including a major international crackdown in 2012. District Court in Illinois issued the temporary restraining order on June 28 barring the companies and individual defendants from engaging in such practices, freezing their assets and placing control of the business with a court-appointed receiver. Saying that the FTC and Florida attorney general are “likely to prevail” in their complaint against the companies, the U.S.
#Tech utilities scam series#
“Once in control of consumers' computers, defendants run a series of purported diagnostic tests, which, in reality, are nothing more than a high-pressured sales pitch designed to scare consumers into believing that their computers are corrupted, hacked, otherwise compromised, or generally performing badly,” the complaints say. “I think it can be pretty significant when you talk about the pop-up ads that cause a consumer’s computer to malfunction,” said James Davis, an attorney in the FTC’s Midwest region who worked on the case.Īccording to the complaint, would-be victims who called the toll-free number also were asked to give the bogus tech support workers remote access to their computers. Some victims, many of them elderly, also were sold ongoing tech support plans ranging in price from $9.99 to $19.99 a month, the agencies said. Those who called in response to the pop-ups were given a high-pressure sales pitch designed to frighten them into spending $200 to $300 to repair the problem and another $200 to $500 for replacement antivirus software. In many cases, it says, when a user attempted to close the ad, another opened up, making the computer browser unusable.
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The pop-up ads were designed to resemble security alerts from Microsoft or Apple, the complaint says. The operation used online pop-up ads to mislead computer users into thinking that their machines had been infected with malware, instructing them to call a toll-free number to obtain repairs and antivirus software, according to the agencies.