Computer, & Phone Scams, Hacks, & Viruses

[Chuck H]

A while back my wife kept getting calls saying she had a payout due from an insurance company she'd never heard of. This went on every few months for over a year, then we had a letter that was very poorly written saying the same thing. The contact number was a premium rate so that got binned. Around two years after the 'scam' calls ended she received through the post a shares pack saying because the company was unable to contact us the cash value had been transferred to tradeable shares. We still didn't recognize the insurance company but there were instructions on how to trade in the shares for cash. We went to a bank in town that had a trading terminal for the public and with some guidance cashed in the shares - enough to buy a motorcycle she was considering at the time.

We asked at the bank about the shares. They looked up the company and it turned out to be the result of a series of takeovers and when the original company was taken over all the policyholders were awarded a cash sum because the company was mutually owned. It subsequently changed hands a couple of times more and the share value had risen far more than the original cash value.

The main problem all along was the whole thing looked like just like a scam.

I've had the same thing happen to me. I won't go through the whole story, but it was some small investment deducted from regular paychecks when I was younger. That along with two monthly bonuses payed relative to sales performance. This company had changed hands twice before the books settled. Not enough to buy a motorcycle, but IIRC I did get an ADAT home recording system

I don't remember the logistics now, but there use to be a free service through the department of the treasury that allowed you to look up any unclaimed money that might be allocated to you. That's actually how I found the money in the above scenario. It was mine, but just sitting in a bank earning interest for the company until I claimed it. That might explain why they never contacted me. And why many people aren't contacted. It turns out there's a lot of unclaimed money. In todays skeptical circumstances any attempt to pay out would be taken for a scam anyway.

[mikepukmel]

I got this email today.
It looks legit, but has to be a phishing scam.
I logged into prime, no notices.
Since nearly everyone now uses amazon, and prime, please be careful with your personal information!
See Screenshot.
T

Its ancient history now, but if you hit reply, of course don't send the reply, but if you hit reply, what is the destination full email? Would love to see that.

[big_teee]

Its ancient history now, but if you hit reply, of course don't send the reply, but if you hit reply, what is the destination full email? Would love to see that.

All of the address info is back in post 67.
T

[mikepukmel]

All of the address info is back in post 67.
T

Thanks, ok yeah I get these too! Tons of them, mostly in my Hotmail account. Often some really funny sounding thing
that doesn't even try to mimic a valid sounding email address.

[Chuck H]

We received two calls, about a half hour apart, on our land line phone last night. It was "Apple Support" reporting that "security on our iCloud account had been compromised" and we needed to supply the necessary account information to fix it and protect any personal or private records the account may contain. It sounded remarkably legit too. And the reason it did is because this wasn't a scam out of Asia or western Europe. The phone number provided (208 262 0000) is out of Idaho. They must be doing well with this one to make consecutive calls to the same number.

[bsco]

I get calls from somebody from Microsoft based out of New York..(at least that is what they tell me)...and they have a very hard time speaking english.....anyway, they tell me that my computer is dumping garbage out on the net and that they need to access the computer in order to clean it up....I tell them that it is impossible...I don't have a computer and they just keep repeating the same message to me...like a robot....for a while it was happening all the time but not lately....maybe they got sick of calling and not making any money.....and when you call the number back it is not in service....

[glebert]

I get calls from somebody from Microsoft based out of New York..(at least that is what they tell me)...and they have a very hard time speaking english.....anyway, they tell me that my computer is dumping garbage out on the net and that they need to access the computer in order to clean it up....I tell them that it is impossible...I don't have a computer and they just keep repeating the same message to me...like a robot....for a while it was happening all the time but not lately....maybe they got sick of calling and not making any money.....and when you call the number back it is not in service....

I was at my mom's house and she got a similar call on her landline. Guy said that the security was compromised and that he "could see everything the computer is doing." I said "OK, tell me what is on the screen right now." Then I threatened to call the cops on him.

[Chuck H]

I'm telling you guys, it's fun to mess with these callers. First you tell them you have to go find whatever info they're looking for (take a long time "looking"). Then give them a false number/password/card info, whatever. When they realize it's wrong you apologize and say something like "Oh!, Haha. Silly me, that was my library card. Hold on while I find the right card." And make them wait again. Then, while you're "still looking" (remind them you're still looking) try to start a random conversation about something uncomfortable. Like how you have to manage a bad boil breakout on your neck. Remember to mention how bad it smells. Then yell at an imaginary person to stop watching porn on the computer. Then "Oh, hey, here it is." And give them another false number...

Of course this takes time you might want to prioritize differently

[nosaj]

I must be special I don't get these calls.

nosaj

[bsco]

In my case it was on the land line...don't get it on the cell...

[nosaj]

In my case it was on the land line...don't get it on the cell...

can't afford one of those.
The land line that is.....
nosaj

[Chuck H]

can't afford one of those.
The land line that is.....
nosaj

I can't either. We have one because it's subsidized by assistance for my father in law, whom my wife cares for. He wouldn't even know what to do with a cell phone and he needs the line anyway for his emergency alert button service (as in: I've fallen and I can't get up). He lives in a makeshift "apartment" downstairs and we live in the upstairs. I wish we could get a subsidy for the RENT! But yeah, my wife is pretty good at getting some services covered that other people don't ever question. It's the only way we can get by with dad's small, fixed income.

[big_teee]

We still have the landline, Uverse for the computer.
Two prepaid cell phones, and Dish TV.
So far we're still making it.
I get those calls about my Windows Computers, causing problems.
We have all our laptops on Linux.
No pot, or a window to throw it out of!
T

[bsco]

How much does it cost for a land line?? We have a package that included internet, home phone and cable..the cable of course is garbage..I always watch youtube...but if we cancel the cable, our cost goes up...so that is why we had to take cable with the package...the cell phone is only a flip phone with a very basic package and we had that for when we were playing out of town just in case we ran into trouble out on the highway in the middle of nowhere...by the way, Happy Thanksgiving.....

[nosaj]

I think about 60 a month is going rate here. It used to be a great thing for hurricanes cause all the the CO boxes(big green boxes) were filled with batteries that kept the phone service up.
Att is fixing to sell the landline side because it's so costly for them.

nosaj