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Action 9: People solicited by phone for information after computer problems

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some people are contacting Action 9, saying someone called, said he's tied to Microsoft and offered to help them get rid of a hacker for hundreds of dollars.
 
Kannapolis resident Ada Helms said the caller even knew her name and said she had a problem: Someone hacked into her computer. 
 
"He says, 'We're affiliated with Microsoft Windows and, when something like this happens, it pings us,'" Helms said.
 
She says he offered to block the hacker for $138.  She said yes and paid online.
 
"I didn't know what to believe.  I was scared to death," she said. 
 
She says he spent hours accessing her computer from a remote location.  A few weeks later, she says, he called again, said she was hacked again, and offered lifetime protection for $299.  She agreed and paid online again.  Then she got suspicious.
 
"The bad thing is, I've got all my passwords for everything stored in a file on my computer," she said.  So he may have seen all of that.
 
Microsoft emailed Action 9, "Consumers will never receive a call from Microsoft asking for a credit card to charge for computer fixes."  It says, "Never provide your personal information to unsolicited callers and/or emailers." 
 
Apple told Action 9 the same thing by phone. 
 
Another senior citizen contacted Action 9 a few days later, saying someone claiming to be with Microsoft called her four times.  She said no.
 
"He picks on us old people," Helms said.
 
Helms said no when the man called her a third time.  While she doesn't know if he got any personal information, he at least got more than $400 from her, payment for what, she doesn't know.
 
For Microsoft questions or concerns, go to http://support.Microsoft.Com/.
For Apple questions or concerns, go to http://www.Apple.Com/support/.