Sep 30 - PC Cleaning Scam
Between April and September 2010 Action Fraud recevied 47 fraud reports from people cold called by a man claiming to be from for software companies such as Microsoft, Online PC Care, Virtual PC Doctor and Acer.
The fraudster uses different approaches to try and convince his targets to transfer him money. One is to say he is aware of errors being reported on the victim’s computer, a second is that he can 'see' their PC is running slowly and a third is to ask if their PC is running slowly. The fraudster offers to fix the problems and the victim is asked to turn control of the PC over to him so he can make changes to the system. This usually takes him an hour.
In the early incidents (April 2010 to June 2010) the customers were asked to directly pay for the services. Some were told that the initial fee was £23 and the total amount would depend on what services were provided. In later incidents the victims were directed to a website where they were instructed to enter their debit card details. On one occasion the man became aggressive when someone refused to pay, stating he would re-install the viruses.
Over several months the methodology of the fraudsters has changed but the theme has not. Seven reports talk of a man directing victims to a website and asking them to enter their details (including financial details) so that specialist software can be downloaded. When completing the payment screen the victim is providing the criminal with enough information to use their credit/debit card and possibly duplicate their identity. There are forums on the Internet where people are discussing these types of fraud. Click on the link below for more information:
http://spywarehammer.com/simplemachinesforum/index.php?topic=4968.0
NFIB advice - people should be very wary when cold-called by someone claiming to be from a software or Internet provider. Bank or credit/debit card details should never be given, and only known and trusted websites should be used to download software.
