Victim Location 53091
Type of a scam Tech Support
While on the internet, message came up that firewall (computer protection) had been breached and to call a number. My husband showed it to me, did not remember what he had been doing on the the internet exactly, so I believed the message and called the number. I was told that already people were into my computer, that I had viruses (I forgot that Apple computers are protected from viruses!) and that they would take care of the problem for a certain fee ($129) and it would take about 1 1/2 hours to fix. I mistakenly gave them my Apple password so they could get into my computer and could see them going through stuff on my computer. They called back and said the best protection was $499.99 for lifetime protection and I went for it, giving them my checking account number and check number for that amount. Apple checked my computer and removed anything that should not be there.
They (the scam experts at the Genius Bar at the Apple Store) said there were not any viruses that even could have gotten into my computer because Apple computers are protected from viruses. So it was a lie when I was told by Support World that my computer had been attacked by viruses. Support World also scared me by telling me that hackers (they saw 3) were already visible in my computer as I was on the telephone with them. The Apple experts on scams said no one had been in my computer. I was so scared that I had a problem that needed to be dealt with immediately that I made the mistake of falling for it and agreeing to their rebuilding my firewall, which they said had been breached, and agreeing to payment and giving out private information. Since realizing that my firewall had not been breached, that it was a lie and a scam to get business, I closed down my checking account, changed my password for my computer and I don’t answer my phone. Support World is persistent in wanting to make me think their company wants to protect my computer, especially since the company was unable to get my payment, but I have not talked to them since my first encounter.
My gut feeling is that it is a company in a foreign country but uses contacts in the USA for routing phone calls. The voices of those I spoke with have foreign accents. Hope this info will protect other consumers, who might be IT challenged.