The scammers are at it again. Since we’ve all caught on to the tech support scam, they’ve started a new one to try to get into your computer. It’s still “Microsoft” calling, but this time they’re going to auto-bill you $599 for “your computer service subscription”. It also appears that they’ve given up on having actual people making the initial call, it’s a robo-call now.
“As your computer service subscription will be auto-renewed, there will be an auto-deduction of $599 from your bank account. In case you don’t want to be charged, please call us to cancel your subscription. Our toll-free number is 1-888-928-7888. I repeat, the number to call is 1-888-928-7888. This call may be recorded for training and analysis purpose.”
I didn’t call back this time, but others have. What they’re trying to do is get you to let them remote access your computer to “cancel your subscription”. Don’t do this. It’s a complete scam.
- Microsoft will never call you.
- Microsoft will never call you to renew anything, they’ll just let it expire.
- Nobody can cancel a Microsoft subscription by logging in to your computer.
- If you already have a Microsoft account (Office 365, etc), feel free to log in to your console and see if you need to make a payment. Don’t click any links that ask you to log in to this console, go directly there by going to either portal.live.com or portal.office.com.
- NEVER let random people remote access your computer, no matter what they say. There are legitimate reasons for remote access. We use it here all the time. If you’re going to let someone remote access your machine, make sure it’s someone with whom you have an ongoing relationship, like your accountant or your IT company.
- Never give out your passwords.
- If you’re still unsure, call your IT professional or on-site IT.
- Microsoft will never call you.
If you have any questions, Give us a call at 970-639-0629, we’d be happy to give you answers.
I got a call today from an autocall telling me I would be auto-charged $399 to renew my acct and to press 1 if I didn’t want my acct charged, not thinking I pressed 1. Did this in any way give them a chance to enter my checking acct or credit cards? These scammers should be lined up, blindfolded and…….left wandering in a field of broken glass.
They have called me 4 times today. thanks for this article.
You’re very welcome! I wish there was a way to block them.
I’m always a big fan of wasting their time. I kept the last one on the phone for nearly 10 minutes by playing dumb, then I asked him how he sleeps at night scamming people like that. I also asked him if his mother knew that he scammed people for a living.
He swore at me profusely and then hung up. Mission accomplished.
I just called them back to mess with them (I work remotely and resent the interruption). They said I could pay through “online banking” but when I asked for their routing number, the guy said we didn’t need it. Total scam but at least I wasted five minutes of this guy’s life and, hopefully, cost him some money.
Called me today. Was taken aback at first, then realized, 1-Microsoft never calls and 2-we have subscriptions through our schools, so I immediately googled for scams–Thanks SO MUCH for posting this and confirming my suspicions!
I’m glad we could help!
Thank you they have called me 3 times today.
Thanks for putting this on line – confirms I did the right thing. I called them back and basically told them where they could go.
You’re welcome! That’s always my favorite response. 😉
i recieved this call and called them back asking what are they talking about and how are you gonna charge me when you dont know my information or anything about my computer they got so frustrated with me called me something in another language and hung up on me and when i tried to call back they blocked my number
The best thing to do with this is to block the number if possible. They’re lying to you if they say they have your information because they don’t. They’re just trying to scare you.
will they actually charge ur bank account though? I just got this call and hung up as soon as it said it would auto-charge me… i just need to know whether they could gain access to my bank account
Hi Lily! They won’t charge your bank account unless you give them access. If you’ve called them back and given them your bank account info or a credit/debit card, you’ll need to contact your bank. If you haven’t given them any information, they won’t charge you. They don’t actually have your information, they’re just trying to scare you into calling them back.