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If your computer gives you a loud warning noise and has pop-ups that say it has been infected with a virus, please think twice before calling the phone number provided on the pop-up. Or you may receive a phone call from “Tech Support” telling you that your computer has been infected and that it needs urgently removed.  Be aware that both of these situations are red flags that you have encountered a Tech Scam.  

These calls are not uncommon and are hoping to gain your trust. If you get an out of the blue call from someone who claims to be a tech support person, hang up and call the company yourself on a phone number that you know to be legitimate. A caller who creates a sense of urgency or uses high-pressure tactics is probably a scam artist.

If scammers are able to gain your trust, they may:

• Ask you to give them remote access to your computer and then make changes to your settings that could leave your computer vulnerable.
• Try to enroll you in a worthless computer maintenance or warranty program.
• Ask for credit card information so they can bill you for phony services - or services you could get elsewhere for free.
• Trick you into installing malware that could allow them to steal sensitive data, like user names and passwords.
• Direct you to websites and ask you to enter your credit card number and other personal information.
• Try to enroll you in a worthless computer maintenance or warranty program.

If you get a call from someone who claims to be a tech support person, hang up and call the company yourself on a phone number you know to be genuine. Keep these other tips in mind:

• Don't give control of your computer to a third party who calls you out of the blue.
• Do not rely on caller ID alone to authenticate a caller. Criminals spoof caller ID numbers. They may appear to be calling from a legitimate company or a local number, when they're not even in the same country as you.
• If you need tech support, look for a company's contact information on their website, software package or on your receipt.
• If a caller pressures you to buy a computer security product or says there is a subscription fee associated with the call, hang up. If you're concerned about your computer, call your security software company directly and ask for help.
• Never give your password over the phone. No legitimate organization calls you and asks for your password.
  

If you think you might have downloaded malware from a scam site or allowed a cybercriminal to access your computer, don’t panic. Instead:

• Update or download legitimate security software and scan your computer. Delete anything it idenitifies as a problem.
• Change any passwords that you gave out. If you use these passwords for other accounts, change those accounts, too.
• If you paid for bogus services with a credit card, call your credit card provider and ask to reverse the charges. Check  your statements for any other charges you didn't make, and ask to reverse those, too.
  

If you receive a call claiming to be from Microsoft or offering tech support, just HANG UP and report the incident to https://www.bbb.org/scamtracker/pittsburgh.