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Tor Mackenzie

It's annoying when you pass referrals but people don't even have the courtesy to say thank you :-(

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I met Tor McKenzie through networking events and knew that one day I would work with her.  She has a talent for speaking in plain English, getting to the nub of an issue and providing reassurance for…

David ShindlerDavid Shindler

Computers seized in anti ‘scareware’ raids

So sayeth Simon 
On the Jun 23 11

Rochester & Associates Ltd - Blog post

£45 Million is estimated to have been collected by the scammers

Computer security is a tricky business, and we get at least 10 calls a week, asking is something is legitimate or that a PC has been ‘infected’.

Thanks to many media stories about hacking this and data that, people are, quite rightly, worried about the potential of their PCs lack of security.

Sadly, there are people praying on that very sense of paranoia, and promoting ‘fixes’ for ‘detected threats’ – when in actuality there is no real threat but the awful fake software warning you. :devil:

[quote]This warning rapidly escalates in to many pop-ups about ‘Security risks’, ‘Detected virus activity’ or ‘Illegal content detected’ ~ then, miraculously, you can pay £££s to have all these issues fixed.

That’s exactly what the scammers are after. Your hard earned pounds.

In this case approx. £45 MILLION  of your hard earned pounds! :shocked:

Many, many people have fallen for this scam ~ and I have to admit (having seen several versions of this very scam), it does seem incredibly legitimate ~ paying sometimes over £80 to get the fake fixes. :blink:

Finally the FBI have got involved and conducted raids in 12 nations, worldwide. These raids, dubbed “Operation Trident Tribunal”, and led to computers being seized and gaining control of 5 bank accounts used to hold the cash collected.

The solution is simple ~ and incredibly impractical ~ don’t use the Internet or put anything on your PC. That’s the best preventative measure you can have (one security expert said that the only way to completely protect a PC from threats, is to leave it in the box!). There is however, some more practical, preventative steps to take.

Firstly, you need a good anti-virus package ~ we use the Eset software, and have for many years. This software will warn you of potential problems before you get some nastiness in there. It will also clean  the badness out if you do get infected too.

Secondly, don’t click on any advertisements, some carry secret code to infect and infiltrate your PC.

Finally, avoid websites that are heavy in those self same adverts, this usually means ‘free’ gaming sites, gambling sites, or anything of an adult nature.

If you do have problems though – call us! 08456 340 599
We’ll get you clean :D


Free computer health check

Call us to request your FREE mini audit of your computers, server (if you have one) and network. 08456 340599.

After this We GUARANTEE to be able to add value to your business.

We will analyse your computer systems, identify problem areas and advise you on how these problems can be removed so your business can run more efficiently

Will give you impartial advice from a position of knowledge – for no more than the cost of a cup of tea.

Free IT audit is available to businesses within West Yorkshire, UK.

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