A middle-aged mum’s guide to cyber safety

I spoke to a scammer for 25 minutes. This is what I learned.

Scammers like him are very charming, very patient and very persistent, writes Kathy Sundstrom.

It started with a simple typo.

I typed an extra letter when searching for a credit bureau, my screen froze and an alarming pop-up from "Microsoft" appeared, warning access to my PC had been blocked for "security reasons". It said I should contact Windows Support on a toll-free number for help.

Eight weeks earlier and my response would have been despair. Instead, there were high fives all around the office.

Eight weeks earlier, I quit a long career in media to join the fast-paced world of cybersecurity at IDCARE. I scarcely knew what a 'pop-up' was, and I definitely didn't know about "remote access" and the sneaky tricks hackers use to gain access to computers, steal funds and your identity.

 

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The "Microsoft pop-up" scam is worryingly common in Australia. Our National Case Management Centre receives calls from people who have fallen prey to this several times a day.

 

I decided to call the 1800 and see what tricks the hackers were using. The phone was answered by a man with an accent from "Microsoft security".

He said his name was "Harry Parker" and he was calling from Microsoft's Sydney head office. He gave me the actual street address of the Sydney head office (although he did spell it wrong) and, when asked, he said the weather was "cloudy and 71 degrees Fahrenheit".

Harry Parker claimed his accent was Canadian (it wasn't) and he had moved from Canada to Australia three months ago (in the middle of a pandemic). He was 21, single and his mum was "49 years old and over".

Harry tried to get me to allow "Microsoft security" to check my computer for viruses by pressing the "Windows and R" keys on my keyboard. This creates a command prompt where he asked me to type in some words (I won't include them here). I would then type in a code and this would link his computer with mine and he would be able to see what was on my screen.

And this is how they do it. They might also ask you to give your driver's licence to "prove your identity" before they help you, but all they're doing is harvesting your information.

I didn't allow Harry access to my computer, despite his repeated assurances I could "trust" him. What I learned from my chat with Harry is that scammers like him are very charming, very patient and very persistent and they don't give up when you disconnect the call.

A few minutes after our first conversation, Harry called me back. This time he wasn't interested in fixing my computer, but was hoping we could "connect" on social media or WhatsApp and asked for my details. He claimed he wanted to connect because "you have such a pretty voice".

What would he do with those details? I'll explain next time, but if you see a pop-up on your computer appearing to be from Microsoft and your screen has frozen. Don't panic, don't call the number, use "control plus w"as this will close the window. If it persists, do a "control, alt, delete" and task manager will allow you to "end task" and close the browser down.

 

 

Kathy Sundstrom is a former Sunshine Coast Daily journalist who now works at identity and cyber support service IDCARE.

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