Watch out for the “red or orange” sign on gadgets, which means a scammer is about to steal your money – $924 million has already been lost

NEVER be fooled into clicking red or orange pop-ups that say a computer virus has been detected.

This money-saving warning comes from technology experts concerned about victims of hundreds of millions of dollars in fraud.

According to the FBI’s 2023 Internet Crime Report, over 37,500 complaints of false tech support scams were reported in the United States alone.

As a result, in 2023, victims lost over $924 million.

In late April, the FBI found that tech support scams were the most frequently reported type of elder fraud in 2023.

These types of scammers may try to trick you using a pop-up window that appears on your computer screen.

For example, it may look similar to an error message from your operating system or antivirus software, says the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

“Tech support scammers want you to believe that you have a serious problem with your computer, such as a virus,” he added.

“They want you to pay for support services you don’t need to fix a problem that doesn’t exist.

“(Scammers) will often ask you to pay by wire transfer, by putting money on a gift card, prepaid card or cash top-up card, or by using cryptocurrency or a money transfer app, because they know these types of payments can be difficult to reverse. “

COLOR CODED

When it comes to scam pop-ups, the message in the window will urge you to call the phone number urgently for help.

However, the tech gurus at Kaspersky noticed a clear sign that it was a fake.

“These notifications are usually a disturbing red or orange color,” the company’s website says.

HACKING FEARS

“If you see this type of pop-up on your computer, do not call this number,” the FTC urged.

“Genuine safety warnings and messages will never ask you to call a phone number.”

However, they may claim that the problem is something other than a computer virus.

The problem is that the scammer controls the new account and quickly deletes it.

FTC

These tech scammers also use fake security pop-ups to claim that someone has hacked into your bank, investment or retirement account and is using it for fraud, for example.

“To help, they redirect you to another scammer who pretends to work with a government agency (such as the Federal Trade Commission or FBI) ​​or your bank’s fraud department,” the FTC said.

“The scammer claims that the only way to protect your money is to transfer it to a new account.

“The problem is that the fraudster controls this new account and quickly deletes it.”

Suspicious pop-ups are one of several ways these greedy scammers brazenly steal your hard-earned money.

They also target computer users who make unwanted phone calls.

For example, fake tech support people will call you out of the blue and pretend to be a computer technician from a well-known company.

They will lie and claim that they found a problem with your computer.

REMOTE

The scam continues, tricking you into allowing them to remotely access your computer.

The scammers then pretend to perform a diagnostic test.

The next step is to make you pay to fix a problem that never existed.

If this happens to you and a stranger calls you and says there is a problem with your computer, just hang up.

“Legitimate technology companies will not contact you by phone, email, or text message to tell you there is a problem with your computer,” the FTC said.

“Pop-up security warnings from real tech companies will never ask you to call a phone number or click a link.”

If you are contacted by a tech support scammer, report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.