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Re: Top 5 Internet Scams - Watch Out!

 Posted by Bev Uston on February 10, 1997 at 00:15:54, in response to Top 5 Internet Scams - Watch Out!, posted by Michael Dalton on December 26, 1996 at 10:07:38

 

I'd like to add one also:
There is a big scam going on where a person calls and says that they
are doing a computer survey from a company. The company name that
they give is usually a big well-known software company, and they
usually say that they are doing the survey because they want to give
out free software. They want to know what would be a good time for
someone to come from their company and install the software on your
PC. They also ask questions about income, etc.

During their questioning, they (unknowingly to you) find out what time
you're usually home, what kind of computer equipment you have and all
sorts of other valuable information. At a company where a friend of
mine works, a co-worker of his received one of these calls, and he was
robbed the very next day (of course, when he was not home). I received
a similar call yesterday afternoon. Fortunately, I knew about this
ahead of time, and we didn't provide them with any information.

I want to make you all aware of the situation and the potential danger
involved in giving out any information like this over the phone. The
people sound very genuine, and very few people are going to question
receiving free software. I would advise you, however, to tell the
people that if they have your phone number, they should have your
address (we think they're getting it off the internet somehow), and
they can mail you any free software they might be offering. If you
have a home computer set-up, you should be familiar with installing
your own software. You may even want to tell them you don't have a
home computer whatever you're comfortable with. DO NOT give out any
information that you may regret later.

Pass this information along to friends and family members. The fewer
people they are able to scam, the better.

 
 

 


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