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Tech support scams are a particularly sneaky approach criminals use to make money off of people’s trust. It is important that all Santa Clara University students, faculty, and staff know how to identify these scams to protect individual and university resources.

Phone Call Scams

Scammers often use phone calls to snag their victims. They may call you claiming to be from tech support and offering an urgent service to fix something on your computer. Their goal is to download information-stealing malware to your computer, gain remote access to your computer, or get your credit card number to charge you for bogus services.

Phone Call Red Flags

1. They call you. A real tech support group will never call you offering help unless you ask for it first.
2. They offer vague details to convince you. When a scammer calls you, they might already have obtained your name and other basic information from other sources. They are often able to guess what kind of computer you have and what software you use based on what’s popular; that doesn’t mean you can trust the caller. If they have one of these details wrong, immediately report the caller to the FTC.
3. They create a sense of urgency and then offer a solution. Scammers want you to panic so that you are less likely to be suspicious of their motives.
4. They confuse you with a barrage of technical terms.
5. They ask you to locate a specific file on your computer as evidence you have a virus. Scammers take advantage of people’s lack of technical knowledge by talking them through finding a common file most computers have to gain your trust.
6. They ask you for passwords, credit card numbers, or other sensitive information, tell you to download something, or want to take remote control of your computer.

What You Need to Know

1. Do not trust your phone’s caller ID. Criminals can spoof phone numbers to make it look like they are calling from a legitimate organization.
2. If you recognize the company the caller claims to represent but have any doubts or suspicions, hang up, find the company’s number from a reliable source like your software package, and initiate the call yourself. Be careful calling numbers you find with online search results.
3. If you do not recognize the company, hang up.
4. Never give out financial or personal information to tech support, and don’t give remote control of your computer to someone who calls you out of the blue.
5. If the caller pressures you to buy a security product, subscription, or service, hang up. If you are concerned about the security of your computer, go straight to the Technology Help Desk or your antivirus vendor.

Popup Scams

Scammers might also try to trick you in the form of a popup alert that says your computer has been infected with a virus. In order to save your files, it will tell you to download something, visit a website, or call a number.

Popup Red Flags

1. The popup is not from your antivirus software. You should only be getting virus notifications from your antivirus software. Make sure you are using a reliable and reputable antivirus software that updates daily and scans your computer regularly. Antivirus software is available for free for SCU students, staff, and faculty here.
2. The popup comes from your Internet browser rather than your antivirus software.
3. The popup uses flashy graphics or audio. A reputable antivirus will never send you flashy or alarming popups.
4. The popup creates a sense of urgency.
5. The popup asks for financial or personal information before you can “fix” the problem. Once you have obtained a legitimate antivirus, it will never charge you to solve a problem it finds.

Here are some more examples of virus scam popups:

What You Need to Know

1. If your legitimate antivirus software finds malware after a scan, it might send you a popup to alert you that a virus was found and cleaned, or that you need to take further action to delete infected files off your computer. If you think your computer has a virus and need help, call the Technology Help Desk at x5700. More information on dealing with viruses here.
2. You should not have to pay, download something, or give away information to get rid of a virus. A legitimate antivirus will probably prompt you to delete infected files if it can’t eliminate the virus first itself.

Advertisement Scams

Finally, sometimes scammers will try to get you to call or contact them first through advertisements for bogus security services. At best, they will sell you useless software.

At worst, they will steal your personal and financial information and infect your computer with malware.

Advertisement Red Flags

1. You haven’t heard of the company or it is not recognized as an antivirus software vendor.
2. The deal seems too good to be true or promises amazing results.
3. The advertisement tries to create a sense of urgency or panic in you.

What You Need to Know

1. Scammers can pay to have their ads show up high in online search results, even above legitimate providers. Never trust search results automatically.
2. Always do your own research first to make sure you are not getting scammed. If you are a SCU student, staff, or faculty member, you can get free antivirus here.

What should you do if you fell for a scam?

• Do not turn your computer off. Stop all activity on your computer, call the Technology Help Desk at x5700, and tell them you have an urgent issue and suspect an information security event occurred.
• If you paid for a bogus service with a credit card, contact your bank, let them know scammers have your credit information and ask to reverse the charges. Cancel your card so they cannot take more money.
• Change any passwords you gave out or that might have been compromised. If you use the same password for multiple accounts, change all of them. If you cannot login to an account, contact the company that runs the service.
• Start monitoring for further signs of identity theft and be ready to take further action.
• Use antivirus software to do a full scan of your computer and delete any files that may be infected.
• File a complaint with the FTC here.
• Look out for further scams. For example, you could be the victim of a refund scam-- the same criminals contacting you to give you a refund on the bogus service you paid for, when they will really use your new financial information to withdraw more money.

Always be suspicious of technology and security services and be very careful who you give your information and access to. You can always call the Technology Help Desk at x5700 to resolve an issue.