WHEN Jenny Heath received an unexpected phone call telling her there was a problem with her Computer she was naturally concerned.
“The caller said it needed to be fixed urgently,” she said.
It wasn't until later that the Seventeen Mile Rocks grandmother realised she had almost become a victim of a clever and costly scam.
The con involves criminals posing as computer security experts and tricking internet users into buying anti-virus protection for Viruses that do not exist.
The fraudster cold calls customers using a fake company name and tells them their PC is infected with viruses and needs to be fixed urgently or it will be destroyed.
The offender then directs the victim through a process on their computer, ultimately giving them remote access to the computer to download viruses or gain access to Personal information.
Ms Heath said she had been targeted by this scam six times.
“During the first encounter, I was unsure if the call was genuine or not,” Ms Heath said.
“They sounded very professional and convincing.
“But at the same time something struck me as strange about the way they were calling me out of the blue like that.”
Fortunately for Ms Heath, she hung up before she revealed any personal information.
An 80-year-old Inala woman, who received a similar call, said she was terrified after being told her computer was at risk.
“I was worried sick for days, thinking someone was accessing all my personal information,” the woman said.
