Windows scam call (2023 Update)

[Ed Pawlowski]

I finally got one of the calls from one of the windows scammers telling me my computer is sending error messages. He caught me at a good time when I was taking a break and had time to play.

Of course,I thanked him for calling and told him how scared I was that my computer was broken and he offered help. Fist, I had him wait while my computer booted up. (I was reading some news on it at the time)

I was amazed at the detail he gave me. Told me to use my finger to press the Windows key. I asked him what finger. Oops, I used my thumb and have to start over.We finally got to the point of typing a URL.

He said type www. Oh, I typed wwww. He said no, three w's..OK threew. That went on for a few variations then we got to the type dot. OK I have wwwdot.

After about 20 minutes he called me a mother f... and hung up.

[ChairMan]

have the ladies ever told you that you have a way about you? good one, Ed

[Pico Rico]

you should keep track and see if you can get to 30 minutes next time. I assume you gave him enough "positive" feedback to keep him on the hook for that long.

[philoÂÂ]

I actually know someone who did something like that simple because he was so dumb.

He could not get his email setup and over the phone I could find no errors in what he was entering.

When I go there , instead of using the "@" sign, he entered the word "at"

sheesh

[Seymore4Head]

I just got one too. When the guy called I was on the other line. I told him that I was and to call me back in 20 min. I switched over and the guy called right back. I told him to wait and call back in 20 min. He did.

He spoke in a heavy Indian accent. I ask him if he worked for Microsoft and he said he did. I ask to speak with someone that could speak English. That didn't slow him down. He said, sir please take your finger and press the Win key and press R.

I told him to take his finger off the Win key and shove it up his behind.

He said F***you and hung up.

[Ed Pawlowski]

What helped was knowing up front what the call was about and thanking him for calling to help me. I bet he thought he had me hooked right away. I also had the time to play rather than just hang up.

What he did not know is that I like to string them along.

A few years back we were transitioning from regular health insurance to Medicare. Our deductible for the year was already paid in, but when I changed to Medicare, the started my wife from $0 and did not cover some bills. It took month to get straightened out. Meantime I was not paying $1000 I did not owe. Then a collection agency started calling my wife.

Caller: Can I speak to Mrs. Ed? Me: This is Mrs. Ed Caller: You don't sound like her Me: How do you know what I sound like if you never talked to me?

I got a call from them once a week. After a few weels... Caller: How do you want to pay the $643? Me: I can't pay, I just bought a new Weber grill Caller (choking) Don't you think you should pay your medical bills? Me: Not now, we're going to have Porterhouse steaks tomorrow.

Insurance finally paid so no more entetainment.

[Pico Rico]

come to think about it, if my computer was fouled it, it could stall and need rebooting (or reboot all on its own several times over the course of the phone call.

I love it!

[micky]

That seems to be the only nasty reply they know. Except for the girl I dealt with who said "foik you". I wonder if the two phrases are related.

[Kurt Ullman]

Interesting question. I have a Mac. I wonder what would happen if I went through all of the steps he gave me for Windows and, just when we was at the point of near orgasm, mention it was a Mac. I wonder if I could go all the way (safely) and then confuse him when the stuff did not work. I know, I am a teasing tart....

[Ed Pawlowski]

You could at least get to the web site. I was tempted to go to the site he was giving me, but I honestly couln not understand what he was telling me to type. It would be fun to set up an old computer with financial information, such as your Nigerian bank account.

[Pico Rico]

better to find out a mobster's bank account info, or info for identity theft. They know how to deal with these types of people.

[Thane]

This has been done. See an earlier post in this group by Ned Turnbull,

*Can any of you tell, from the accent of this English, WHERE it comes from?*

He recorded the conversation while he downloaded the files. He posted the conversation here,

It's a rather graphic 30 minute discussion with an Indian self-proclaimed Microsoft support person(?) who became very inflamed at how it went. Warning - strong language. Enjoy.

Thane Kudos to Ned.

[Ned Turnbull]

A friend of mine was looking for Toshiba Technical Support a few days ago, and ran into this site, only about 2 weeks old (it turns out), registered to a Mohit Singh.

He calls the toll-free number at that web page & gets "Sean" almost immediately, who is very helpful (or so it seemed).

Sean proceeds with the classic Indian Scam using TeamViewer, until my friend pulled the Ethernet cable & hung up the phone when he typed dir /s and then typed a message that there was a virus in his modem.

The friend is running virus scans as we speak!

[clare]

Related to 4Q too, I suppose.

[Steve Stone]

I tell them I threw out all my Windows computers years ago.. only smart phones here. Then I ask them if they work on phones cause I have cracked glass. They hang up.

[Ed Pawlowski]

Should have bought a Windows phone :)

[Todd]

Dude! You are the man!

[nestork]

This "Windows" scam is new to me. I haven't heard about it yet, but I presume it's all about me taking out my wallet and giving my credit card number to someone for helping me fix Windows on one of my computers.

A few years ago, it was a Nigerian that was offering to send us our share of King Mbtubu's enormous estate if we paid the inheritance tax on that money up front.

I blame television. TV shows in the USA show people that wait tables in restaurants or work as labourers in car washes living in modern spacious apartments, wearing new stylish clothing and not having any financial problems.

Those shows go into syndication and end up being what people in Africa and Asia watch on a daily basis, and they believe what they see. Laverne and Shirley both work as waitresses in a restaurant and live in a nice apartment and always wear nice clothes. Red Foxx collects scrap metal for a living and lives in a modern house with his son instead of a hovel made of corrugated metal on the edge of a land fill site. People who collect scrap metal in America are clearly wealthier than the bankers in Bangalore.

People in Africa and Asia figure that if they can fool even one of the millions of Americans and Canadians they contact by e-mail to send them money or allow them to withdraw money from their credit card account, it makes the endeavor worth their while.

It would help a lot if modern TV programs showed the ugly reality of some people's lives in the West. Say 19 year old girls that have a child from a absentee father trying to figure out how they can go to work, and pay for rent and day care for their child at the same time. Or, perhaps 17 year old guys who are addicted to prescription pain killers who use what little money they get from shoplifting to get high.

It's clearly the "London streets are paved with gold" syndrome. 300 years ago in Britain, the only people that could afford a horse and carridge to take them out into the country were the very wealthy. Since every Londoner the country folk encountered were very wealthy, the country folk came to believe that ALL Londoners were very wealthy; so much so that the streets in London were paved with gold.

[KenK]

Ed Pawlowski wrote in news:LdednRlH-Lz7oZ_JnZ2dnUU7- [e-mail]:

What an 'interesting' way to make a living. I'll bet he can't wait to get to work!

[Zaky Waky]

nestork wrote in news:nestork.e4a5178 @diybanter.com:

It is worth their while; otherwise they wouldn't be doing it anymore. And what's wrong with stealing money from the stupid? The U.S. government does it all the time.

19 year old girls? How about 14 year old girls. That's more the age in the darkie (and W/T) areas of town.