I called the number on a fake virus pop-up. What do I do now?
Stay calm and act quickly. Hang up, disconnect from the internet if they connected to your computer, remove any app they had you install, and run a full virus scan. If you paid, call your bank or card company right away. Then change your passwords.
Lots of careful people fall for these calls, so there's no shame in it. What matters now is closing every door the scammer opened. If you let them connect, they may have installed remote access software so they can come back later. Find it and uninstall it.
Money is the most urgent part. Card payments can often be disputed if you move fast. If you paid with a gift card, contact the company that issued the card and keep the receipt. Then report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov if you're in the US.
- Hang up and don't answer if they call back
- Uninstall any app they had you install, then run a full scan in Windows Security
- Call your bank or card company and tell them it was a tech support scam
- Change passwords for email, banking and anything you typed in while they were connected, using a different device if you can
- Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov
How secure is your computer overall? Take the 2-minute checkup →
If You Already Called or Paid
From the Scams & Fake Pop-ups course. Calm, clear steps to take if a scammer already got through.
Try it on the practice computer Read the full lesson
The reading is free. The hands-on lab is part of Pro.