The screenshot attached to this post will provide a good laugh to anyone that knows Windows. What the supposed “Windows Technical Support” expert has done here is type commands like “14 Trojans Found”, “Drivers Corrupt” and “Hackers to Network”! into command prompt and then tell the computer owner that their computer is infected and needs a lot of work to fix.

When you get an issue on your computer please think about taking it to someone local. What our customer has done in this case is had a problem with her laptop display and googled for free windows support. They have started an email or online chat and the person that has answered from some country overseas has then convinced them to start a gotomeeting (www.fastsupport.com). This allows the remote user to gain access to your computer. They then tried to convince the customer that they needed a lot of work done and it will cost $x. Of course, once they are in they can install whatever they like and in cases like this will do absolutely nothing to fix your pc – in fact they will probably install trojans and malware so they can use your computer or get in again in the future.

Luckily for this customer they thought twice before proceeding and brought the laptop in to us to have a look. When we saw the command prompt window we had a laugh. It may not be so funny if you part with hard earned cash to these scammers though. Please use someone local and reputable – it may seem more expensive than free or super cheap online support but is it really?

Authored by Ian

Ian Johnson is a Director of OJ Networks. He has been working in IT since 1995. Mentored by the best, Ian started as Technical Support Officer for an innovative dialup ISP in Brisbane “Hub Communications”. He progressed to become a Web Design and Programmer in ASP, ASP.NET and PHP during his time at “The Lab Development Group” with David Vandenberg amonst others. Ian has been working as a Consultant on the Sunshine Coast since 2001 and became a Microsoft Certified Information Technology Professional (MCITP) Server Administrator in 2010 after which he formed OJ Networks. He has assisted numerous small businesses to reach their potential through IT Infrastructure Planning and Implementation and Web design, Development and Web Marketing. You can connect with Ian on Linked In.