Have you received an unexpected phone call from a so-called »Microsoft expert« claiming to have received a report of serious virus problems from your computer? Or maybe you indeed needed technical support for your computer but contacted the wrong support supplier found on the Web? If this is the case, there is a good chance that you fell victim to a fraudulent business selling empty anti-virus protection suites for a considerable amount of money.
According to the PC Pro magazine, the fraudster cold-calls the customer and tells them that Microsoft has detected a virus on their PC, then invites them to download a piece of remote-assistance software. Reassured by the lines of an indecipherable code flitting across their screen, the customer is assured they can make the virus vanish – but first, of course, they want payment.
The Guardian explains what victims of this kind of fraud can do, saying that although the police are unable to effect refunds for people who were scammed by the cold callers, those who believe they have been mis-sold a product or service online should report the matter to trading standards, via its website (www.consumerdirect.gov.uk). They add that if a criminal offence has clearly been perpetrated, the matter should be reported to the police. UK victims can reach them at http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/.
View this video to see how this kind of scam works.
ISL Light remote desktop service
As the remote desktop software developer, we feel obliged to protect people from unauthorized access and possible harmful acts. Therefore, security has always been our top priority; our software for remote desktop support ISL Light does provide maximum security.
How is ISL Light secured?
ISL Light uses industry-standard (SSL) security technologies to protect data transfer. The information exchanged between users is encrypted from end-to-end, meaning that even our server – the ISL Conference Proxy cannot decrypt the content of the session but only transfers packets from one side to another. And last, applications are digitally signed by means of a VeriSign Certificate.
How is remote desktop software abused?
Although ISL Light’s security is tight, cold callers can still use it if the customer consents to a remote desktop session. In order to start a session, the customer needs to run the application, enter a session code (or click on an invitation link in the email), and agree to share their desktop and keyboard with the other side. The good news is that after closing the session, the fraudulent caller cannot access the computer any more.
See how ISL Light works:
Disclaimer
The ISL Online Team never provides technical support for general computer problems. The ISL Online Team only offers support regarding matters concerning ISL Online software; helping users to implement ISL Online software successfully at their site and helping them to resolve any kind of technical issues that arise during its use. The ISL Online Team provides support over the telephone only when specifically asked by a customer to do so. The ISL Online Team never requests credit card information. Interested parties are either directed to visit ISL Online Shop, contact an ISL Online Authorized Reseller, or send email with a request for an offer. And last, the ISL Online Team doesn’t have insight into the nature of remote desktop sessions performed by our users; we cannot monitor nor can we control their content.
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