Fake Tech Support Calls

Fake tech support scams involve someone — either an unsolicited caller or a person you reach via a pop-up prompt — impersonating a well-known technology company, your internet service provider, or an official security organisation. They claim your device has a serious problem: a virus, an error generating alerts on their system, an account breach, or similar. Their ultimate goal is to gain remote access to your device, steal money, or harvest your personal and financial data.

The scam can arrive in several ways. A call may come completely out of the blue. Alternatively, a scareware pop-up on your browser displays a phone number and urges you to call immediately. In some cases, you might see a suspicious charge on your account that prompts you to search for a support number — finding a fake one in the results instead of the real company's contact.

What makes this scam particularly effective is the authority the caller projects. They know general details about the software on your device (easily guessed) and use real-sounding technical terminology to build credibility. The call often feels like a genuine offer of help rather than an attack, which lowers your guard at exactly the moment it should be raised.

The caller identifies themselves as working for a technology company, a security team, or your internet provider, and states that their systems have detected a problem with your device — errors, malware, an active breach, or illegal traffic originating from your IP address.

To demonstrate the 'problem', they may ask you to open the Event Viewer on a Windows computer (a tool that always contains benign warning and error log entries) and point to entries as evidence of infection. They make normal system activity look alarming to someone unfamiliar with it.

They then ask you to install a legitimate remote-access or screen-sharing tool so they can 'fix' the problem. These are real pieces of software used by genuine IT support — the scam lies in who is using them and why. Once connected, the caller has full control of your screen.

From this point, the scammer may open your banking app or direct you to log into your bank and dim the screen so you cannot see what they are doing. They may transfer money to their own accounts, set up new payees, or take screenshots of your balances and login credentials. Some will plant actual malware for later use. Others charge large fees by card for a 'clean-up service' that accomplishes nothing.

The call can last a long time — sometimes hours — with the scammer maintaining friendly conversation to keep you comfortable and compliant.

The scam succeeds because it appears to originate from a position of authority and helpfulness rather than threat. Most people have a mental model of tech companies as large, organised entities that monitor systems — so the idea that they might call feels plausible, even if it is not how these companies actually work.

The use of technical language — Event Viewer logs, IP addresses, error codes — creates an information asymmetry that is difficult to challenge in the moment. If you don't know what a normal Event Viewer looks like, the scammer's interpretation feels authoritative.

Additionally, once a small amount of trust is established (the caller is friendly, seems knowledgeable), the escalating requests feel reasonable in sequence. Each step — opening a tool, installing software, granting access — feels like a small, logical part of a legitimate support process.

A person receives an unexpected call from someone claiming to represent a technology company. The caller says their system has been flagged by that company's security network as having errors. The caller asks the person to open a system diagnostics tool and points out log entries as 'proof' of infection. They then ask the person to install a remote-access application and share an access code. Once connected, the caller navigates to the person's online banking and dims the screen. After the session ends, the person discovers that several transfers were made to unfamiliar accounts and that a new payee was added.

This is [tech company] support. Your computer is sending error reports to our servers. Install [remote tool] so we can fix it right away.

We've detected suspicious activity on your account. Please call [phone number] immediately — do not restart your computer.

Your internet service will be suspended in 24 hours due to virus activity detected on your IP address. Call [phone number] now.

Hi, this is the security team. There's been a login attempt on your account from another country. Can you verify your details?

We need to run a quick remote scan to protect your device. Please download [remote tool] from [fake link] and share the code with us.

Your support warranty has expired and we're seeing alerts from your machine. Call [phone number] to renew protection.

The fundamental rule is simple: major technology companies and internet providers do not make unsolicited calls about problems on your device. If someone claims otherwise, this is the scam.

If you are genuinely concerned that a call might be real, hang up and call the company back using a number from their official website — one you find yourself, not one provided by the caller. Take several minutes between ending the call and redailing, as scammers sometimes keep the line open.

Never search for a company's support number in a search engine immediately after a suspicious call — fake support numbers frequently appear in search results. Go directly to the company's official website.

If someone claims to be from your internet provider and cites your IP address as evidence, be aware that IP addresses are not private and do not prove a company called you. Anyone can look up or guess them.