Issue 12.15
I try to keep my readers updated about scams that threaten their computers. A lot of that is simply reminding people that, if you didn’t ask for it, you probably don’t want it. If someone has to force a pop up on your screen to tell you what they have is what you need, they are not trying to serve you – they are trying to hurt you, or your computer or trying to take your money. If they provide you a phone number or ask to take control of your computer, you can be very sure that they are trying to damage it in order to charge you money to “fix” the damage they intentionally caused. If they offer to fix your computer if you download their software (thus bypassing your anti-virus), you can be pretty sure they are going to follow that up by requiring money from you to fix the damage their “fix” did.
A new offender that I am seeing quite often lately is very annoying and dangerous. A plain white page with a black typewritten message appears on your screen indicating that problems have occurred on your computer and that you need to call a phone number or download a program for them to solve those problems. If you try to close it by clicking on the “x”, nothing happens. You can’t get rid of it and you can’t do anything else because it basically disables the click on your mouse. (This is a sure-fire clue that they do not have your best interests at heart). You can’t even restart the computer. If you give in and install the program or phone the program provider, you are in for a bumpy ride and probably a big repair bill to reverse the problems they cause.
The best solution is to hold down the power button for about 5 seconds which should turn off the computer. Then restart and hopefully the pop up will be gone. Immediately update and run a scan with your anti-virus and anti-malware programs. I recommend Kaspersky or Esset in the paid versions (Norton 360 is good too but slows the system down). In the free realm, AVG or Avast for anti-virus and Malwarebytes for anti-malware all do well and have upgrades to commercial versions that also rank well without breaking the bank.
The other thing I am sorry to have to advise people on is to be very careful of downloads, even if the program is one you are sure you want. Many of the software download depots now encourage or require you to use their “software downloader” to install the programs they provide. These downloaders create a backdoor into your system and interfere with legitimate downloads. I have had to remove them from a number of people’s computers because they made them run terribly slow and installed programs they did not want. Take the time to read before you click and never let anything in between what you requested and what you actually download. It is not worth it.
Hope that helps – and always remember to back up anything on your computer that is important to you.
Shaun McCausland has worked in the computer industry for over 33 years, 26 years of it locally with Bits ‘N’ Bytes and Musicomp and currently does in-home and on-site computer consultation, service, training and repair. If you have questions you can reach him at 435-668-7118 or shaun@musicomp.net.