Microsoft South Africa has issued a press statement saying it is once again warning local consumers to be cautious of a reoccurring phone scam by fraudsters claiming to be from Microsoft.<\/p>\n
The scams have left the wallets of unsuspecting consumers hundreds and, in some instances, thousands of rands lighter, Microsoft said.<\/p>\n
According to Microsoft, cybercriminals and scammers make use of public phone directories as information gathering sources on consumers in an effort to convince clients that they can be trusted.<\/p>\n
These callers claim to be from Windows Helpdesk, Windows Service Centre, Microsoft Tech Support, Microsoft Support, Windows Technical Department Support Group, or even Microsoft\u2019s Research and Development Team.<\/p>\n
From this point onwards, Microsoft said the scam typically unfolds in the following manner: A cold caller, claiming to be a representative of Microsoft, one of its brands or a third party contracted by Microsoft, tells the victim they are checking into a computer problem, infection or virus that has been detected by Microsoft.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn reality, the scammer only tricked unsuspecting consumers into believing that there is a problem and that paying a fee would be the best way to sort the issues out. Often they will also push clients to purchase a one year computer maintenance subscription,\u201d said Ashleigh Fenwick, Microsoft South Africa\u2019s PR and communications manager.<\/p>\n
Beyond this tactic, cybercriminals also aim to trick consumers into installing malware onto their PCs, with the aim of gathering sensitive data such as online banking logins, Microsoft said.<\/p>\n
Fenwick says that consumers should be aware that Microsoft will not cold call them with regards to malfunctioning PCs or viruses.<\/p>\n
In the rare instance where Microsoft might contact consumers directly, the caller will be able to verify the existence of a current customer relationship, Microsoft said.<\/p>\n
In order to keep from falling victim to the phone scam, Microsoft provided the following advice to local consumers:<\/p>\n
Mandela Internet scam<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Fraudsters using Woza Online to scam people in SA<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n