Trusteer Warns Of Bogus Microsoft Support Calls

Fraudsters are now posing as Microsoft support staff in order to gain the trust of computer users, and then attempt to hijack their PCs and sell the victim fake security products.

This is according to Mickey Boodaei, the CEO of banking security specialist Trusteer, who warned in a blog posting that his company has been contacted by a user of  its Rapport secure log-in system, after she received a telephone call from someone claiming to be from Microsoft Windows Solutions.

The fraudster told her that they were ringing because of error messages from her computer, and he was tasked to help fix any problems she had.

Widespread Con

Indeed, the author of this article can personally confirm this after having being approached a couple of times in a similar way by someone claiming to be a member of Microsoft support staff. The author hung up on the person.

Unfortunately, it seems that the woman who contacted Trusteer did not take the same action but instead she was tricked into letting the supposed Microsoft support person remotely connect to her PC. The fraudster then showed her the “viruses which had infected my system.”

The fraudster then tried to con her into buying bogus security products.

“When he tried to sell me some software I ended the call and did not give him any personal details, credit card or otherwise. Nevertheless, I’m worried that my computer may be vulnerable to future attack”, she told Trusteer’s helpdesk.

The victim had apparently followed the fraudsters instructions to access a website and had downloaded a ‘free’ remote access application, that allowed the fraudster to access her computer.

“He then showed me a long list of files – all viruses, he said, and some very dangerous. I told him that I had good security on my computer”, the victim said, adding “I could not understand how that could happen.”

“He said he was transferring me to his supervisor who would solve these problems. The supervisor showed me yet more virus files, which he said were located in a hidden part of the computer and he couldn’t therefore clean it up without Windows 7 being installed (I run Vista) and some new security software,” she said.

Sales Push

Fortunately for the victim, her computer was not infected, but the fraudsters did try to sell her a £300 security application, which they said they could offer her much more cheaply.

“As he rang off, he warned me that my computer was in very bad shape and would crash any day. The call lasted around 20 minutes and I feel like such an idiot to have been taken in for that length of time, and very nervous that they had all the time in the world to infect my computer,” the victim told Trusteer.

“We searched our support database for similar incidents and indeed we do see users coming in with similar reports from time to time. From that we can conclude that this is indeed a common method of fraud that users should be aware of and avoid,” wrote Trusteer’s Boodaei.

“It’s easy to think that you’d never fall for this type of fraud. But keep in mind that these fraudsters are very experienced and good at what they do. If it’s not you then it could be your friend, your parents, or your spouse who may be taken in by this sort of plausible-sounding security support call,” he added.

Microsoft Response

A Microsoft spokeswoman confirmed to eWEEK Europe UK that the company is aware of the issue and that it is an going problem. The Microsoft spokeswoman said that they would never contact customers in that way.

“We are aware of scams involving people claiming to be from Microsoft and needing remote access to consumers PCs. These scams are not new,” said Cliff Evans, Security, Identity & Management Lead at Microsoft UK, in an emailed statement to eWEEK Europe UK. “We would like to remind users of Microsoft software that the company does not keep track of consumers that purchase their software and does not directly contact consumers for any reason whatsoever.”

“Do not to trust any caller claiming to be from Microsoft and needing access to your home PC,” Evans added. “We do encourage people to keep safe when online and to always ensure the copy of Windows they are running is genuine and fully up to date. We encourage all PC users to visit http://update.microsoft.com”

“When using a PC that is connected to the Internet we also encourage users to download and install legitimate software to guard against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software,” he said. “Free products such as Microsoft Security Essentials  and Internet Explorer will help protect users from online threats and will help everyone realise the Internet’s full potential.”