Phone calls claiming to be from Microsoft or BT
"We've detected a problem with your computer." It remains one of the most effective scams in the UK, and the people who ring are professional, patient and well rehearsed.
No genuine company — not Microsoft, not BT, not your bank, not us — will ever phone you out of the blue about a fault on your computer.
How the call plays out
The script is consistent, because it works.
- They name a real company and claim your machine is infected or your broadband is being misused
- They walk you to a Windows screen full of ordinary warnings and present it as proof
- They ask you to install a remote support tool so they can "fix" it
- A refund or fee follows — and the bank screen you're shown is fake
- Some finish by locking the machine so you'll ring back
What they're actually after
Rarely the computer itself. The real targets are online banking, saved passwords and a payment — sometimes months later, when a second caller rings "to process the refund you were owed".
Anyone who has paid once is added to a list and called again. That repeat contact is why it matters to report the first call, even if you lost nothing.
What to do during the call
There's no need to be polite about it. Hang up. You cannot lose anything by ending a genuine call, and you can lose a great deal by staying on a fake one.
- Don't confirm your name, address, bank or any account details
- Don't install anything, however harmless the name sounds
- Don't let them read you a code or ask you to read one to them
- If you want to check, hang up, wait five minutes, then ring the company on a number you already had
If you let someone onto your computer
Act quickly and in this order.
- Disconnect from the internet — unplug the cable or switch Wi-Fi off
- Ring your bank from a different phone if any banking screen was open
- Change your email and banking passwords from another device, not that computer
- Have the machine properly checked before using it again — remote tools and hidden accounts are often left behind
- Report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040, and to your bank if money moved
Protecting an older relative
The most useful thing you can give someone is permission to hang up. Agree in advance that nobody will ever be cross with them for ending a call, and that they can always ring you first.
Practically: register with the Telephone Preference Service, switch on call blocking if the phone or provider offers it, and make sure they know that a real company never asks for remote access. On a monitored machine we can also see if an unexpected remote tool has been installed, which is often the first proof that a call went further than they remember.