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Scam Phone Call - Warning

hpearson
Joining in

Yesterday I received a phone call on my land line from 'Virgin Media' to say there were problems with my router and that my internet connection would go down in 4 hours. They transferred me to the engineer.  I fell for the scam and gave them access to my laptop via 'Any Desk' they were very professional and blinded me with technical information about how my internet connection was being used by other people, offered a visit from an engineer to replace my router. Got very stroppy when I said I was putting the phone down. Terminated the call but took ages to uninstall 'Any Desk'

This has caused a nightmare for me 

The call came from 01618349299 which of course is unobtainable

11 REPLIES 11

-tony-
Alessandro Volta

number is meaningless as its just cloned - as to the scam its as old as the hills

change all your passwords that are on the computer and any bank details urgently - run antivirus check and malwarebytes or whatever 

____________________

Tony.
Sacked VIP

Chris_W1
Forum Team
Forum Team

Hi hpearson, I am sorry to hear that you have received such a call, our technical team will be able to look at the connection remotely and if needed book an engineer. We would not ask for access to the PC. Our technical team will usually call from 0345 number. Can you do as instructed and run an anti virus to see if there is any viruses. Please update all severity details with any financial institutions you may have. Chris 

Anankha
Problem sorter

 

Try running these programs:
MBAM free: https://www.malwarebytes.com/mwb-download/
Eset online scanner: http://www.eset.com/us/online-scanner/
Adwcleaner: https://www.malwarebytes.com/adwcleaner/

If these find one or more infections but do not fully remove them it will be wise to register with a malware removal site to receive dedicated malware removal instructions, an expert will remain with you throughout the process until confirmation that your PC is 100% clean.
Malwarebytes virus/malware removal forum:
https://forums.malwarebytes.com/forum/7-windows-malware-removal-help-support/
Bleeping computer malware/virus removal forum:
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

My Broadband Ping - Virginmedia

Littlelisa41
Joining in

I just had this this morning.  A man with a strong indian accent tried to get me to download AnyDesk in order to "ascertain the security of my laptop" I opened the anydesk website and at that point I realised that they hadn't explained anything and wanted access to my desktop.  I hung up. they tried to call back several times. I turned the phone off in the end. I nearly fell for it as I am experiencing so many problems with my internet connection with Virgin that it was almost believable. The numbers are different every time they call.  just cloned numbers. I feel annoyed that I nearly fell for it - especially as I work within a technical department which deals with fraud on a daily basis!!

Hi Littlelisa41, thanks for the message and sorry to hear that you have been having issues with the, We would never ask to gain access and would always call from our 0345 454 1111 number. Please let us know if you need anything? -Chris 

PurpleTulip
Joining in

Just had a call on my landline saying they were calling from Virgin Media and that there were problems with someone breaching my security and using my internet and causing problems with my internet connection and speed.  

After going through an online speed test ( I used Google), they tried to get me to download Anydesk.com so they could do a 'ping' test which is not part of the Google test.  I am familiar with the term so was suspicious, asking them to verify they were indeed from Virgin. and why on earth should I give them remote access to my computer to do a 'Ping' Test.  They got very frustrated with me when I took too long to carry out their test instructions and then refused to download Mydesk.com until I discussed it with Virgin.  They said it was a special fraud department with out-going calls only so not on Virgin's main menu system.  I hung up refusing to discuss further but  their number was [ REMOVED ] 

[MOD EDIT: Private information has been removed from this post. Please do not post personal or private information in your public posts. Please review the Forum Guidelines]


@PurpleTulip wrote:

Just had a call on my landline saying they were calling from Virgin Media and that there were problems with someone breaching my security and using my internet and causing problems with my internet connection and speed.  

After going through an online speed test ( I used Google), they tried to get me to download Anydesk.com so they could do a 'ping' test which is not part of the Google test.  <snip>


At least you recognised it for what is was, a scam. VM do not make unsolicited technical support calls to customers.

When you converse with the scammers, it just confirms for them that your number is active and there is someone at the end of the line willing to talk to them. This means they are very likley to call back again with a view to convincing you that there is actually a problem or in the hope of talking to someone else to try the scam on. Hanging up without speaking to them is the best approach.

nodrogd
Very Insightful Person
Very Insightful Person

@PurpleTulip 

The 020 number quoted is a genuine business number belonging to a company in London. This number has been cloned by the scammers (that are actually calling from India) to fool you into thinking its a UK call.

As this is a public forum I will ask a moderator to mask it in case it causes further trouble for the unsuspecting company.

VM 350BB 2xV6 & Landline. Freeview/Freesat HD, ASDA/Tesco PAYG Mobile. Cable customer since 1993

I'm a Very Insightful Person, I'm here to share knowledge, I don't work for Virgin Media. Learn more

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Molly_G
Forum Team (Retired)
Forum Team (Retired)

Hi @PurpleTulip,

 

Thanks for your post and welcome to the forums - I'm very sorry to hear that you received such a call.

We do offer further advice on Fraudulent Calls including what to do next and reporting them.  

 

Thanks for your vigilance! 

 

 

Molly_G
Forum Team



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