SOLVED Microsoft just called me!

[anna62]

Just an update for information. I just received a phone call from Microsoft to say my computer was generating thousands of error messages. I was suspicious so I phoned my ISP and he said he had never heard of Microsoft phoning anyone. He phoned the number they gave me and sure enough it was Microsoft Support Centre!! They are worried that I have a virus that is getting through Malwarebytes and MSE. As my computer is working perfectly now I'm just going to monitor the Event Viewer.

 

[TrainableMan]

How would Microsoft know your phone number? It's not like that is information you provide them. Just because someone answers the phone as "Microsoft Support" doesn't mean they are. It all sounds extremely suspicious.

 

[clifford_cooley]

He phoned the number they gave me and sure enough it was Microsoft Support Centre!!

Curious, what number did they give you?
Have you done a search on-line for this number?

 

[Core]

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

 

[TrainableMan]

The company has noticed the problem. "Microsoft does not make unsolicited phone calls to help you fix your computer," it says on its website."If you receive an unsolicited call from someone claiming to be from Microsoft Tech Support, hang up. We do not make these kinds of calls."

Anna if you did let them access your computer then you are now compromised.

 

[anna62]

I just ran Malwarebytes and the computer started going slow as it had before. I've uninstalled Malwarebytes and installed it again and it's going normally. The problem is somewhere in Malwarebytes. In the event viewer it has error messages about every 30 seconds. Any ideas?

 

[TrainableMan]

take a screen shot so we can see the errors

 

[anna62]

I can take the snip but then can't copy and paste it, help

 

[TrainableMan]

• Go advanced (see example below)
• hit the paperclip icon
• browse for file desired, hit upload and wait for it to finish (note file size limitations listed at the bottom - files too large will be rejected)
• close the upload window
• position the cursor where you want the image added within your text
• hit the triangle beside the paperclip
• choose the image to embed in the post. (Any images uploaded but not embedded will be attached to the bottom of the post)

 

[anna62]

Oh dear, I'm in a bad way. First I did let them access my computer, second I don't know how to go advanced.

 

[anna62]

This is the phone number they gave me 00442071937899.

 

[anna62]

I've done all this and the message I get is
The message you have entered is too short. Please lengthen your message to at least 10 characters.

 

[anna62]

And there is the error report

 

[anna62]

What is the best thing to do?

 

[TrainableMan]

Did you pay anything/buy anything from these people? If so contact your credit card company right away.

The best thing to do is not easy. I would back up all your data with Windows Easy Transfer to DVDs or a separate harddrive (Windows easy transfer is part of W7, simply type Easy in the start search bar). I would also make a back-up of your drivers to another DVD using something like freeware Double Driver (Windows 7 has most drivers and will usually download the rest on reboot but it's nice to have them just in case). Then I would completely reinstall Windows, install your AV software and malwarebytes, then restore the WET data, Run a full system scan on all your data, and then reinstall all your other programs.

For me, all the registry tweaks and programs I install this would take at least a day working on and off; longer if I get frustrated and throw my keyboard out the windows and have to go buy a new one so I know this is not an easy thing to suggest but it is the only way I would feel safe after such an event. The truth is, even restoring your data could risk reinfection, that is why I recommend a total scan before you reference any of it after your fresh install.

-or-

If you have a complete system back-up taken BEFORE all this junk started happening then that could save you a lot of time because you can simply back up your data and then do a complete system restore. We do recommend these complete system back-ups, but unfortunately most people are not aware of their need or benefit until something like a virus or a hard drive failure causes a catastrophic loss.

BTW the 10 character limit is just a thing for posts, they can be 10 periods or you can say "here is the error report" and you easily have the 10 characters.

Also this is a new problem so I moved it to its' own thread.

 

[anna62]

Thanks for moving it, it is a problem for other people to be able to access easily if they have a similar call.

I didn't give any money or details, they asked for Paypal.

At the moment I am dong a full MSE scan which already says preliminary scan results are showing malicious or potentially unwanted soft ware which I will see the details of once the scan is completed. I do keep some back up on a seperate hard drive on a regular basis but unfortunately I think it backed up before I realised the problem. Is it like a system restore? Can I go to a date?
I am a self taught person so I wonder if the reinstllation of Windows is beyond me? Is it risky? I have the disks for 7 Home premium and the drivers. Can I save the contents of Microsoft outlook? Lots of bills and receipts on there. Could I some how just put the whole lot in a file on my external hard drive?

 

[TrainableMan]

I didn't give any money or details, they asked for Paypal.

Well that's a good thing.

Another product to run is Spybot Search and Destroy.

 

[Ace]

Oh dear, I'm in a bad way. First I did let them access my computer, second I don't know how to go advanced.

It's right beside the "Post Quick Reply" button at the bottom.

 

[anna62]

OK, I ran MSE fullscan, that found one thing Adware Win32/Hotbar which I have deleted. Ran Spybot, also took hours, found 18 cookies on Chrome, dealt with them. Dare I risk going on without a reinstall of Windows? I'm not being ungrateful for the advice, it's just that I don't use the computer for anything dodgy, mostly it's just an Office. Is Spybot compatable with Malwarebytes? The reports I've now read say these people aren't sophisticated enough to hack the computer but want to get bank details or Paypal details from you.

 

[Ace]

If you'd like me to take a look I can, but you'll need to have a few tools on your computer first before you can provide me with necessary logs I need to look at. One of them would be OTL. Reformatting isn't always necessary, I used to laugh at all of the HP tech support I had to talk to back in the day that would give me that as their "support" solution. (Unless there was really something wrong that couldn't be fixed like a corrupt hard drive. I had a few of those from my older hard drives involving a couple sectors.)

Do you know what the process was or the file that was causing the security alert from MSE? Because if you missed something, it's not completely off your system. If there's entries on your filesystem it can be 're-activated' by a registry entry if one was made by the malicious file.