Protect yourself and your PC from fraud

By: RogersHeather

November 4th, 2011 a 2:07pm

You probably spend quite a bit of time on your personal computer, but how well are you protecting it and your personal information?

There are a number of risks out there like viruses, “malware” (malicious software), hackers, scammers, and more. These risks increase each year.

Recently, some Rogers customers have been targeted by telephone calls from fraudsters posing as technical support agents from reputable technology companies such as Microsoft, Yahoo! or Norton. During these fraudulent calls, customers are told that Rogers has detected a virus on their PC and are asked to provide the caller with remote access to their PC in order to remove the virus and install preventative anti-virus software.

Rogers support agents only ask for remote access to your computer when you have called in for technical support. If you receive an offer of unsolicited technical support, be aware that the request may be fraudulent.

Here’s how to recognize fraudulent activity:

Unsolicited offers of technical support – Rogers does not share customer information with any third parties such as Microsoft, Yahoo or Norton related to potential virus infections or performance issues on your computer. You should refuse any unsolicited offers of technical support, even if the caller claims to be from a reputable company
Being asked for confidential information – Customers contacted by a Rogers agent will never be asked to provide:

Confidential information like login names and passwords
Credit card information and/or immediate payment for tech support services

By keeping these tips in mind, you can keep yourself and your PC safe.

If you believe you’ve been targeted by fraudulent activity, please contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-800-495-8501 or http://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/.

Heather is a regular contributor to RedBoard

Rating: 3.9/5 (7 votes cast)

Categories:

Community, Customer experience, Internet

Tags:

calls, fraud, fraudulent, hackers, malware, Microsoft, Norton, PC, personal computer, protection, remote access, risks, Rogers, scammers, Technical Support, viruses, Yahoo!

4 Comments

Marshall says: November 7th, 2011 a 4:19pm

I have 4 Rogers Wireless phone numbers and each and every day I get a phone call from area code 210. I just wish Rogers had a way to block a specific number from our phones. It’s big waste of time and sometimes minutes if I accidentally answer one of these stupid calls.
- Really? says: November 23rd, 2011 a 1:09pm
  
  Doesn’t Rogers offer “Call Manager” feature that let’s you do exactly that?
  
  http://www.rogers.com/cms/flash/callmanager_demo.swf
  
  Maybe you should do you research before you rant.
  - Marshall says: November 23rd, 2011 a 3:55pm
    
    Are you going to cough up the $5 per line to use Call Manager or are you just trying to drum up some more business for Rogers? They must really need your help.
    
    The annoyance factor of receiving these automated calls from Texas everyday is high but I don’t think I should have to cough up the money to block it.
    
    These guys are targeting Rogers Wireless customers and I believe Rogers should automatically block these numbers without making people pay up first.
    
    BTW, two of the phones I have are pay as you go phones and Call Manager is not available for them so your suggestion is only marginally useful at best.
Bella says: November 29th, 2011 a 1:34am

Hey Marshall! If you considered migrating from prepaid to a contract, call manager is usually a free opt in feature with the new in market plans! I’m surprised though that its not available for prepaid accounts!