Scam.

So sorry..
Take this seriously.
Google Windows Care Scam and take care to clean-up your computer.
I don't know how far
or if at all they got into your computer.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20120409190155AA7SZK3

when in doubt, check snopes!
http://www.snopes.com/fraud/telephone/microsoft.asp

Scam. If you agree to it, they "fix" your computer remotely, then charge you more money or else will shut down your computer.

Here is a link that might be useful: Windows Care scam at Microsoft forum

It's always safe to be on the suspicious side with these sorts of things.

This week I had a guy track me down because my home was up for rent and he wanted to make sure it was real. I suspected the guy of something nefarious but it turned out he was right.

My house was listed on a rental website with my name as the contact and an aol email address. You see, I was apparently transferred to the UK and need to rent my house out but I have the keys with me. If you want to rent it, just send first month's rent and a deposit to me via wire transfer and I'll drop the keys in the mail.

Can you believe people fall for this?

We got a call just like that! We are in Los Angeles.
Only my son started asking the questions. The caller was from India and had all kinds of info on my son! Son got very inquisitive right back at him. He was not from microsoft although acted at first like he was. Yes, he was trying to sell, but even more disconcerting was all the information he was able to have!
What an invasion.

My daughter has her car listed for sale. She had 3 calls saying they wanted to buy it and would send the good ole' money order right then. What a bunch of junk, we have to be on alert constantly.

I had a tricky one this week, too. A friend gave me subscription to Atlantic Monthly for my birthday in March.

A guy called, said the call will be recorded (to make it sound official, I guess). He had my name. He said he was calling about the AM subscription sent to...he had my address.

Then he said that there was some problem with the payment I had made (I didn't pay, my friend did, but I thought maybe her credit card had expired or something). I said, "It was a gift, I had nothing to do with the payment." He immediately hung up on me. So I think he was trying to get my credit card info. I doubt I would have given him my cc info, but am not sure. I just had a credit card expire and all my auto pays were rejected because I failed to update the cc info on my accounts. It's been a huge hassle to get them all straight and paid, so I might have thought this was another one (if I HAD really paid for the subscription originally).

The disturbing thing was that he knew I was subscribed to AM, had my name and address and phone #! It seems to me that AM must be selling my info, so I fired off a letter to them, have not heard back yet.

This thread confirms that we never should give out credit card info when a caller has initiated a call to us.

Have you ever googled your own name? That was very disconcerting.

White pages dot com had my full name, age, address, last four previous addresses going back 20 years, my son and husband's full names and phone number. Luckily the phone number was a land line I canceled a couple of years ago.

There was another website (can't remember the name, maybe spokeo) that if you pay $3.99 you can get detailed info on an individual. More than just phone and address.

This stuff is scary and know that I'm thinking about it, I wonder if I should change my username.

Never ever give any information to anyone that initiates the call. If they say there is a problem with your credit card, say you do not give out information and you will call back using the number on the back of your credit card.

Never reply to text messages either or call the number the text message tells you to call. I got a text message saying there was a problem with my CC and they gave a phone number to call. Instead I called the number on the back of my credit card and found out it was a scam.

Yes, NEVER give out info on a cold call. If it's legit, they will confirm your number with you, not the other way around. They will always be able to give you some kind of confirming info about your account. If in doubt, call the company back yourself-not the number they give you, but one you get on your own.

As to googling your name-anything that is out there is information that has always been available to anyone who knew where to look. In the days before Google, you could get info from the DMV, order birthcertificates, property information, any public documents-if it's thru any government agency, it's public information. Used to be thta you had to go to the agency and request the info in writing, now it's available on line.

In my job, I rely on a lot of the technology to do my job. I am always looking up landowner info, company ownership info, aerial photos and googlemaps, even streetview, to do my job. I can find out how much you paid for your property, how much you pay in taxes, how many bedrooms in your home, who your mortgage is with, the make, model and year of your car, where you work, who lives in your home...all very easy and all information is publicly available. With some more digging I can find out what, if any military service you or someone in your family has served. I can find out your cell phone number and who your cable provider is. I can find out what magazines you subscribe to, what clubs you belong to and what charities you donate to. In some cases I can find out your annual income.

What I CANNOT find out is your bank account numbers or credit card numbers or that 3 digit security number.

But if I cold called you and gave you all that other info, chances are good you'd give me your confidential info if I asked. It never ceases to amaze me what information people will give out when they think you know it already.

Pesky, you wouldn't get any information out of me!! Cold calls get answered with nothing in return.

So I wonder how Peoplesmart gets our birth date. That's confidential information!

Your birthdate is easy to obtain. It's also public info-your birth date is usually on your voter info, your DMV records, etc. Basically the only thing that is confidential is your SS number.

They've left the day of month out. It still makes it easier for identity thieves.

I wonder what databases are being sold that contain it. Something
like that is usually on an application for something.

You'd get nothing from me either Pesky.

I'm curious. You said you can tell me who lives in my house, which I have seen too when looking up someone or a reverse phone number, etc. but I believe all I have ever seen is ADULT people who would be listed at the same address. What I'm curious about - how easy is it to find out about children (minors) living in the home? Very scary if that info is so easy to get!

I dont think info on minors is public, but its easy enough for someone to infer that info based on demographics.

Not everyone is willing to give up info easily, but I tell you, it never ceases to amaze me what people will say. I just called a man who I`d gotten a report that he may have a violation. Before long he told me about his financial situation, his schedule, who lives in his home, neighbors proximity and his relationship with them, as well as equipment he has on his property. A wealth of info if I were casing his place! Not only all that, but he confessed, inadvertently to multiple violations, so now I DO have to go to his place.

I dont think info on minors is public, but its easy enough for someone to infer that info based on demographics.

Not everyone is willing to give up info easily, but I tell you, it never ceases to amaze me what people will say. I just called a man who I`d gotten a report that he may have a violation. Before long he told me about his financial situation, his schedule, who lives in his home, neighbors proximity and his relationship with them, as well as equipment he has on his property. A wealth of info if I were casing his place! Not only all that, but he confessed, inadvertently to multiple violations, so now I DO have to go to his place.

A friend of mine with a new computer just got the phony Microsoft call today. Fortunately she hung up, but thought that it might be legit.

Here is a link that might be useful: Microsoft safety and security center