Was this a scam

tehidyman · Sep 06, 2010, 14:08:09

This morning I had an odd phone call. A gent with a very difficult to understand accent (one word in ten). He established that I had a computer and told me that a lot of computers in my city had been infected with things that I did not know about. He identified that I was using windows XP and then got me to run eventvwr which having Googled it I did. He wanted to know how many errors I could see. Looked like quite a lot. He then wanted me to run what I thought he said was presetch but I guess he might have meant prefetch. As 15 minutes had passed and we appeared to be getting nowhere I went silent on him and he gave up. Has any Idnetter had a similar call and did they ever find out what it was really all about? Was it a scam?

Gary · Sep 06, 2010, 14:15:15

Quote from: tehidyman on Sep 06, 2010, 14:08:09
This morning I had an odd phone call. A gent with a very difficult to understand accent (one word in ten). He established that I had a computer and told me that a lot of computers in my city had been infected with things that I did not know about. He identified that I was using windows XP and then got me to run eventvwr which having Googled it I did. He wanted to know how many errors I could see. Looked like quite a lot. He then wanted me to run what I thought he said was presetch but I guess he might have meant prefetch. As 15 minutes had passed and we appeared to be getting nowhere I went silent on him and he gave up. Has any Idnetter had a similar call and did they ever find out what it was really all about? Was it a scam?

Prefetch is what XP uses as a way of loading programs in the background that are used regularly so they have faster access by the OS, its like a tool box of programs and services it needs.

I would avoid chats like that, it sounds a bit odd tbh who was this person from?

tehidyman · Sep 06, 2010, 14:19:59

Quote from: Gary on Sep 06, 2010, 14:15:15
Prefetch is what XP uses as a way of loading programs in the background that are used regularly so they have faster access by the OS, its like a tool box of programs and services it needs.

I would avoid chats like that, it sounds a bit odd tbh who was this person from?

I could not understand where he was from (apart from well east of Suez !)

DorsetBoy · Sep 06, 2010, 14:22:03

It is a known scam (and has been reported here). Have zero to do with them and DO NOT give bank details as they will ask for money etc.

If it is from a UK number it needs reporting to the police.

Here we go :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/18/phone-scam-india-call-centres

and this is what Nowster recorded .....

http://bethyngalw.nowster.me.uk/phonespam.mp3

Rik · Sep 06, 2010, 14:29:06

Agreed, Dorset, absolutely a scam.

tehidyman · Sep 06, 2010, 14:50:09

The press article described the bits that I could understand perfectly. Should have ceased the conversation earlier.

Rik · Sep 06, 2010, 14:57:32

Don't worry, we all get caught up in these things once in a while. Provided you didn'y give any bank details, you should be OK.

Niall · Sep 06, 2010, 15:21:56

I like the scams when they phone me telling me they've found my missing luggage at the main property office for the train station. They won't confirm which station it's in, where it was found, what colour the case is, what type of lock is on it, or even when it was handed in or found.

That's when I laugh at them because I just wasted 15 minutes of their time while I was watching a film, tell them better luck next time and THEY hang up

Technical Ben · Sep 07, 2010, 15:03:06

Quote from: Rik on Sep 06, 2010, 14:57:32
Don't worry, we all get caught up in these things once in a while. Provided you didn'y give any bank details, you should be OK.

I've had a customer ring me, and I was so confused I had to ring them back to clarify the details (mainly my fault, long day at work, after hours). They thought I was a sales call causing trouble.

I still am not sure which address or customer it was.

Hope all it well tehidyman. Many here can get you started and pointed in the right direction if you need PC advice or help. Some may even know a professional or two if you want to spend money on it.

zappaDPJ · Sep 07, 2010, 16:50:04

Quote from: DorsetBoy on Sep 06, 2010, 14:22:03
and this is what Nowster recorded .....
http://bethyngalw.nowster.me.uk/phonespam.mp3

Very professional, he's even working... sorry, scamming regular office hours

This is a a very popular scam, I know quite a few people that have had the call, we've had it twice here. Luckily I've not heard of anyone I know falling for it.