Victim Location 28114
Total money lost $195
Type of a scam Tech Support
Have a new Chromebook PC. (still learning how ro use it). Suddenly the screen went crazy, lots of loud noises. Screen said PC had been "attacked "for want of a better word. Told to call Microsoft Toll free number I did. Charged $295.00. Said they fixed it. A few days later, same thing. Called again, told $195.00 this time, paid fee. "Sam Miller" said I would get $295.00 back.
Decided ChromeBook needed to know PC had been hacked. Called, was told Microsoft had absolutely nothing to do with ChromeBook.The whole thing was a scam. Told me to report it to banking institution. *** *** *** *** *** *** ** returned all funds to me.
On Feb.18, 2020, they took $195.00 back. Said it was legal. Far as I’m concerned they are mixed up in the whole thing and are just as dishonest. *** mailed me "proof" that it was legal. I never saw any of these papers and certainly didn’t sign anything.
Cannot attach anything, sorry.
Victim Location 41059
Type of a scam Tech Support
Scammer left message today (1:40pm) stating that "…Microsoft computer has expired today. All Microsoft services on your computer will stop working by end of day. Contact Microsoft toll free at 1(855) 623-6499."
Type of a scam Tech Support
HI I would like to report an issue with Outlook. My phone was stolen last month. *** * *** *** *** *** ** * *** I am just trying to survive in world. My phone gets stolen 3 of my email accounts hacked with private info. I’ve been trying to recover them ever since. They took the info out of my phone to exploit me. I have tried numerous ways to get ahold of Microsoft support. Email chat support now even a phone call where the person had the nerve to ask me to drove to Walmart get 100 Google play card. Clearly a scam. I’m just bringing to ur attention.
*** *** *** ***
Victim Location 29708
Total money lost $7,000
Type of a scam Tech Support
On May 17 I was browsing on computer and pop up came up then locked my computer.. Then I was told to call a number which was customer service for Microsoft . 1800-642-7676 a Microsoft page appeared on my screen. I called the number a lady came on cl;aiming to be from my bank to inform my visa credit card had been hacked and a charge of $4000.00 was schedued to be taken out from previous day and would clear in a few hours , so we had to act fast she gave me a reference number FTFU54206790 supposedly from my bank *** *** *** ***.
I was then told she would transfer me to Microsoft agent Glenn M1537. I was instructed that if he did not know the code to not give any information to him.. He had the code so I was led to believe it was a legitimate call. I was to do what evernhe instructed me to do from there on out. Unfortunately they scammed me into purcharching Walmart and Google Play cards in the amout of $500.00 each then to scratch off the codes and he would be fixing my account. They even hacked into my bank and transfered all my money to my checking all unauthorized. Then I was told withdraw c the cash to purchase gift cards , I did he kept on the phone with me all day then told me he was working on it and would call me back in 2 hours . never happened instead they had manipulated me and stole $7,000.00 from me wiped my entire bank accounts and maxed my credit cards.
Victim Location 07480
Type of a scam Tech Support
I received a text at work yesterday saying that my microsoft program on my computer was renewed for 299.99 on my card. If I did not want this to occur, to call them back. I did so, and was told I had to be in front of the computer. I called them back from home and foolishly allowed them to access my computer remotely. The sites they used was showmypc2 998.app.zip, ultra viewer 6.2.exe, and team viewer.dmg. They were on my computer for a while, I saw them access the microsoft software, but only viewed it and closed it. They them told me to wait for a phone call from the billing department to arrange my refund. "Billy" called me, (they all had Indian accents), and told me he had to access one of my credit cards to refund the money. I asked for a check and he said that they were moving out of the country and were unable to do so, and could only refund through the credit account. He opened a website from Chase and told me to input my info. I told him I was not going to supply my social security number and he insisted that I do so. I refused, and he became nasty and told me he was not returning my computer function to me, and by that time, he had all of my personal info, including the ss number. He did have control of my computer at that time, and I was unable to do anything on it. I was scared at this point, threatened him with the ScamPulse.com. He became even nastier,and again said he already had all information on me. I hung up on him and turned off the computer. He attempted to call me back several times, and I would not answer. The phone number from where he called was 1-812-565-8927, from Columbus In. I immediately froze my bank account and all of my credit cards.
Victim Location 75043
Total money lost $2,650
Type of a scam Tech Support
The person said his name was Ryan Brooks and gave me I’d. Number which could of been fake.
Didn’t want me too explain and thing too the store clerks and wanted me too lie about what I was getting it for.
Wanted me too stay at the location until they got what he needed.
Then go too another location and buy another card.
It went from 50.00 dollars, 100.00 dollars, too 300.00 and 500.00
Until he got 2,650.00 out of me.
Send you fake receipts too your phone like you where getting it back.
An check your account its pending but nothing comes back.
The numbers are 1-833-446-8444 online number and the number they call you back from is 1-262-592-4774.
Then dont want you too call back if the call is dropped.
Want you too stay on the phone while you go into the store and uses your identification as proof your sending it off.
Saying its your money it will be put back on there.
It’s my fault I was in a rush moving around not looking up information while being rush someone was going too hack me all alone I was the person who call them.
First tinder buying a computer and didn’t have viral protection. Lesson learn. A wife, A mother of 6 just got hacked on 04/24/2019. May God help us all. Please
Victim Location 45159
Type of a scam Tech Support
These scammers have spoofed a local number so it shows up as a name in my address book. When I answered the first time it was a robo call saying it was a lady from Microsoft. I think the name was Kathy but it may have been another name. This is not Microsoft & it is not their number nor does it belong to the scammers.
Victim Location 45245
Type of a scam Tech Support
I am a home health aide, and my patient received a call around 6pm on 4-16-19 and the call was from Mark who said he was with Microsoft and that they had overpaid her $2,000 and they were going to put $2,000 into her account, and they wanted her to go to Walmart and get 2 $500 gift cards. He asked for her debit card info, and she gave it to him.
Victim Location 07470
Type of a scam Tech Support
Pop up on my computer stating I had a virus and please call (888) 229-0684. They claimed to be Microsoft support. Very heavy accent. The man asked for my IP address which I already new how to obtain. I told him I had an account number. I rattled off a made up number and alpha. I asked him if he was able to pullup my account info. He said yes and proceded to try to get my IP address. I hung up.
Please investing or post so no one falls for this.
Thank you
Victim Location 47060
Type of a scam Utility
12 calls in the last 2 Days – caller ID has our own name and phone number! A recording says she is Kathleen from
Microsoft, they will be disconnecting our license within 48 hours. our IP address has been compromised from several countries, and we must change our IP address and license key. press 1 to speak to technician
Victim Location 15146
Total money lost $7,450
Type of a scam Tech Support
I was working on my computer to freeze my credit accounts. I was going to freeze my Equifax Account and I typed in the website that I received in my AARP magazine incorrectly. I believe the account was www.freeze.equifax.com and I typed in www.equifax.freeze.com. My computer showed a message that I was accessing a pornographic website and to call an 866 number and if I closed the message my computer would be locked down. I wish I had kept that but I didn’t. This computer is a new one so I wasn’t quite sure what this message was. In hindsight…I should have just closed it. I got someone on the phone to help and they told me they were from Microsoft and then we got disconnected. They called me back on the Microsoft support number (800) 642-7676. They then connected to my computer and did a scan and showed me where hackers were trying to get into my network. They said I needed a firewall from Microsoft but they didn’t want my credit information so they told me to buy a gift card for $449 for a lifetime firewall support. Made sense because they didn’t want my credit card.
After I got that and they set it up and showed me an invoice. I may still have that on my computer at home. As they claimed they were encrypting my machine with the firewall and alert showed saying it was a security breach and they needed send it up a level. They contacted the Manager Jack Wills and he told me that I was going to have to have a service technician come to my house and install a firewall system for 24 hours to remove the threat but that I need to give them $3,500 in Target gift cards as a deposit for the machine and the technicians that came would give me a check for that amount when they retrieved the machine. They showed me the machine on the screen and its value at $20,999. That was why the deposit had to be that high. I got the gift cards from Target and the technician Leo Shelby stayed on my phone with me through the process. Once I gave him the gift card information he said he sent to billing and then he came back and told me that they didn’t go through and he would connect me with Target to check as to why. Another mistake that I let him connect me. "Target" told me that their server was down and the cards were not valid and they would refund me my money. Again not asking for any credit information. What I found out much later was that the cards did go through and they really hadn’t connected me to Target.
At that point they sent me to get more cards so that they could send the technicians with the machine. At this point I had been on the phone with them from around 10:30 am Saturday, September 29, 2018 until about 1:30 pm. Getting the gift cards was difficult so I kept having to call my credit card company to all. I got 2 at Rite Aid and the other 5 at Giant Eagle in Monroeville, PA. Leo continued to stay on the line with me through the process and I gave him the gift card numbers as soon as I got them to make sure they were good.
When I returned home from this trip, they told me they had got disconnected from my network and that hackers had increased their hold on my network so now I needed a bigger machine and $3,500 more. At this point I figured out this was a scam and contacted my nephew for help. I refused to get anymore cards and I was texting my nephew which I believe they could see and they hung up.
They were very convincing and basically kept repeating they were from Microsoft…all gave me their names and ID’s and they even gave me the names and IDs of the technicians that would be coming to my house. I guess that was what made me think it was legitimate. They also always stayed on the phone with me and connected to my computer. They told me it was to keep my network secure. My guess they were making sure I wasn’t reporting them. Another stupid mistake. I am now out $7,450 but it was my own stupid fault. I am very computer savvy and was watching that they weren’t opening any files on my computer so that also gave me a false sense of security.
Also…as I was buying the gift cards the stores were always asking me if this was right…so credit to them…but Leo kept telling me not to tell them why I was buying them because they would try and tax me for their use. Another dumb thing I did. They also knew I was in a hurry to get somewhere so I think they were using that as additional pressure to make me do what they wanted. I was trying to get it done so that the technicians would come and so I could go to my appointment. I was on the phone with them all day until they finally hung up on me at around 6:30pm. It was the same people throughout the same process and they said they prided themselves on that. They were also pushing me to get it fixed because Microsoft’s reputation was on the line.
Moral of the story…I was totally stupid.
If you need additional information, please don’t hesitate to contact me. The phone number I gave you is my home number so I may have to call you back after I get the message.
Thank you! Please prevent this from happening to others.
Victim Location 07440
Type of a scam Tech Support
The voicemail said that my Windows license has expired. I should call 888-332-9444. I knew it was a scam, but called to see what they said. When I called it said to type in www.windows247.net, which I did not do knowing it was a scam.
Victim Location 84660
Type of a scam Identity Theft
Caller said my computer was being hacked and people were stealing my personal information and they needed to get on my computer so that they could see what was going on. They said they were from Microsoft Technical support and it was vital that they logged in- I stayed on long enough to get the web address they were using to get remoted into peoples’ computers before I disconnected the call so I could add it to the file for reference. I knew better than to let them remote in though.
Victim Location 45410
Type of a scam Tech Support
I received a call on July 30, 2018 from a man posing to be a Microsoft security technician. His name is David Hester. Employee ID
# MISC00122. He said that Microsoft’s monitoring revealed that my computer had a security issue. The matter was supposedly rectified through remote access to the computer. Payment was required by way of a Wal-Mart gift card or with Google Play cards. There was a LOT of pressure put on me to make this transaction. There were 3 Wal-Mart employees who warned that this was a scam. One of the employees was a store Manager. She said I should call the Police, which I did on Wednesday, August 1. The Officer quickly stated that yes, this was a scam. This man called again today (August 1) and kept insisting that this was NOT a scam and that a tech already did some work on my computer and I had to pay for it with a gift card. After that call, I contacted the ScamPulse.com and was told first of all that yes, this was a scam because Microsoft does NOT monitor computers, and I was encouraged to file a Scam Report.
Victim Location 07028
Type of a scam Tech Support
Says all your computers have a license ending and you need to call back to verify to keep them safe.
Victim Location 07726
Type of a scam Tech Support
They called my elderly mother 10+ times a day. Insisting her firewall is down and she has to pay $300 over the phone. Otherwise they are going to shut her computer & phone down. They use several versions of this Michigan exchange. They called her a stupid old lady. They do not speak English too well. If you call the number back, they answer it as “support”. When asked who they were support from, they said “Microsoft”.
Victim Location 07039
Type of a scam Tech Support
Fake call from "Microsoft tech" saying there was a problem with my computer.
Wanted me to reboot and do other stuff.
Said his name was David Jackson (although his english was very poor with a strong India accent).
Made up some hardware id code (156.15.136.1528)
Provided a call back number which answered Microsoft tecnical assistance… but seem fake as I couldn’t find it to be a MS number in any searches.
Victim Location 45662
Type of a scam Tech Support
I started to receive calls about a week ago around 3/7/18 from 888-406-8921, almost every day and had a call today 3-14-18 around 2:45pm. They say they are from Microsoft and have an asian sounding accent, they say they see where we had paid for Microsoft Works $299.99 and they say that we are entitled to a refund and the only way to get the refund is get in front of computer and log on. As soon I said this is a scam they immediately hung up.
Victim Location 07017
Type of a scam Tech Support
Pop up ad on my moms laptop saying call Microsoft support number. She called the number above, and the "tech support" guy was really nasty and condescending towards her. She text me asking what to do. I told her to hang up I will call our internet provider and see what they can do. She didn’t hang up but once they realized she wouldn’t give her debit card number they disconnected the call. Because I am not home to help her, I called *** and they told me I couldn’t change it from somewhere else i gave her my account information and she’s changing the IP now.
Victim Location 08015
Type of a scam Tech Support
This number called me and told me my Microsoft software was about to expire. The man on the phone asked me to go onto my comp and press some keys, then I called him out about the call being a scam and he hung up!
Victim Location 07420
Type of a scam Tech Support
Quite Often, lately I have been getting a red screen telling me to call Microsoft Immediately. Very annoying. I have a paid for internet real time protection and do not understand why it lets this happen. I usually just close it and run a scan and never find an infection, This time i called the number and let the guy have it and told him I was reporting him.
Victim Location 08724
Total money lost $250
Type of a scam Tech Support
A pop up appeared on the computer screen. When click it states the computer has a virus and call the above mentioned number. After a conversation the scammer took debit card info and proceeded to process payment. They have continued to call asking the owner of the computer to turn on the computer so they could do a check up. It was then brought to my attention and informed them this is indeed a scam.
Victim Location 97058
Total money lost $2,000
Type of a scam Tech Support
My dad have paid over $2000 since 2016 to a company by the name of MY MS PC .My dad is old and the scammer took advantage of that Everytime he calls and says there are so many Russian hackers in his computer.
Victim Location 08872
Type of a scam Tech Support
An gentlemen called and told me that my Microsoft Key was expired and that all of my Microsoft functions are expired. When I questioned him on how did he know I actually had a computer he said Mam every key in Microsoft is registered. I said yes. I purchased this and I registered it myself.
I have never had a representative from Microsoft call me prior to these past 4 months telling me that my Microsoft Key is expired and I needed to send them money to re-establish my Microsoft software. I would not let him get that far as to tell me the price of the product. I told him I was reporting him to the scammers. This has been occurring for several months. Sometimes it is a women, sometimes a man, and sometimes an automated phone call advising me to call them.
Victim Location 45331
Type of a scam Tech Support
Told him that my computer was fine and not to call back again.
Victim Location 08837
Total money lost $299.99
Type of a scam Tech Support
On 10/24/17 while on my computer a screen popped up identifying themselves as Microsoft. They froze my computer and said do not delete this message because due to the Microsoft infection I would lose my entire data. The phone number they used was 855-236-8222. I told them I had McAfee Virus Protection on this new Windows 10 Laptop, but they said this infection was into the Microsoft system. They took control of my 2 laptop computers to remove the infection. I took the least expensive charge of $299.99 for two years. On my bank statement it was charged to "Shankar Contributing". They wouldn’t accept a charge from my credit card. It went through on an e-check through my bank, giving them my router number. I do have a receipt they placed on my computer but the statement is under the name "Techowide LLC. ACH/EFT Authorization Form."
Victim Location 45040
Type of a scam Tech Support
A male with broken English called me stating he was from Microsoft and they had information that someone was trying to access our computer. His desire was for us to log on to our computer to allow him to gain access to our computer to remedy the situation.
He called back a second time and my husband told him he was going to contact the FBI and BBB as a result of his calls.
Victim Location 45220
Type of a scam Tech Support
I started receiving phone calls for months, about a year ago Fall of 2016 from 1-855-367-3119. And they said they was from Microsoft and at the time I had a Mircosoft program on the computer, I had a subscription with Microsoft. Then they said we have suspicions that you have been hacked. And then they want me to go to the computer, and put in rescueme, do it by pushing R and windows keys. I knew he was scamming me, so I said no and said I no longer have Microsoft, and he asked what I have, I started goofing around and said Google, and he said you know that isn’t and he started acting unprofessional, he sometimes asks me for $300, and I say I don’t have it and then they ask what do you have. It sounds like they have an Asian accent. It was two guys the other one said you will never be able to use your computer again if you don’t do this. After awhile he was saying I was aggravating him back, so I called Microsoft the last time they did it, and Microsoft said we would never have anyone to call you and do that, we would never do that. So, I have technical support through Cincinnati Bell, they take off what the Microsoft imitators put on. It happens every month around the end or beginning, they know my name and they tell me we have your number to your computer, trying to convince me that they are Microsoft. They want my credit card number to get the virus off my computer.
Victim Location 41051
Type of a scam Tech Support
It started back in July 2017, and received phone calls they said they were from microsoft, and a woman was on the phone whispering and then a gentleman got on, and he said I got internal damage on my computer. He wanted to know what make my computer, I wouldn’t tell him. He was persistent. He had a middle eastern accent. I threatened them would call police, he kept going, I asked for an American person from Microsoft. I said we are calling the ScamPulse.com and they hung up. They were calling from 1-850-110-0011. The lady got on and said click on Windows and hit another button Windows 7 and other menu allows access to control computer.
Victim Location 45342
Total money lost $510.81
Type of a scam Tech Support
Received a message on my computer that stated my computer had a virus and to please call this number. (do not have the number) When I called the number he answered as Microsoft. Stated that someone in Nigeria and China was using my computer and he could fix that for me. He also stated that my computer did not have any virus protection. He added that he could scan my computer and get rid of the virus. He also said Microsoft was offering a lifetime virus protection for @499.00. Lifetime virus protection for $499 sounded pretty good to me. Since my computer was not operating properly, I though I really had a virus. So gave control of my computer so he could fix it. The so called scan (if he did one) took 7 hours. I recently checked my credit card and found a charge of $510.81. I have reported this to the bank and disputed the charge, and closed my credit card.
Victim Location 45051
Type of a scam Tech Support
I was doing some work on the Internet when my computer locked up. A screen came up that I was being hacked. It advised me to call the Microsoft technician and gave the phone number, 1-888-765-2363. I didn’t trust it, but anything I know to do to get back to a working mode of my computer, these techniques weren’t working. (What I know now is that I should have unplugged it.) The "technicians" worked on my computer as things were disappearing. It was frightening and I didn’t know whether to trust them or not. They said that for $69 I could get a one-year protection and they could stop the progress of the hacking. They also proposed a seven year plan. I did not buy into it. Eventually disconnected having lost all of my files and only access to a black screen. I ended up taking my computer to a real technician who was able to retrieve my files.
Victim Location 60061
Type of a scam Tech Support
A message appeared on my computer while I was using it… and it stopped everything from working. the message said I must call the number listed above, otherwise my security and personal information would be compromised. The scammers said they were from Microsoft.