I have been scammed.......now have to have my laptop wiped Grhhhh.

[Dave7]

On my new laptop I decided to download Firefox as that was the browser I was used to on this (my old) laptop. As I clicked "run" I noticed something (cant recall what) that made me think......'that doesn't look right. TOO B&*%$Y LATE !!!!
Next thing everything went tits up and it closed down with just a message to phone this number and thier technicians would fix the problem..........yes I'll do that (not).
Upshot is its now with the experts and is going to cost me 50 smackers to wipe & reload. Plus I may lose some files etc and everything stored in my 'favourites'.
I think I will just smile, wish the scammers all the best and put it down to experience

 

[welsh dragon]

Not good. Hope you get it sorted out soon.

 

[classic33]

On my new laptop I decided to download Firefox as that was the browser I was used to on this (my old) laptop. As I clicked "run" I noticed something (cant recall what) that made me think......'that doesn't look right. TOO B&*%$Y LATE !!!!
Next thing everything went tits up and it closed down with just a message to phone this number and thier technicians would fix the problem..........yes I'll do that (not).
Upshot is its now with the experts and is going to cost me 50 smackers to wipe & reload. Plus I may lose some files etc and everything stored in my 'favourites'.
I think I will just smile, wish the scammers all the best and put it down to experience

Related to your sign in problems?

 

[Sbudge]

Not great, really sorry to hear it. Probably time to change various passwords too, you'd be surprised how much 'leakage' there is when a machine gets compromised.

 

[stephec]

Do you not want to call the number and let rip just for the sake of it?

 

[classic33]

PC World are hardly the experts.

 

[MontyVeda]

On my new laptop I decided to download Firefox as that was the browser I was used to on this (my old) laptop. As I clicked "run" I noticed something (cant recall what) that made me think......'that doesn't look right. TOO B&*%$Y LATE !!!!
...
Upshot is its now with the experts and is going to cost me 50 smackers to wipe & reload. ...
...

where did you download Firefox from?

i'm sure some folks on here will be able to talk you through wiping the HD and reloading your OS, you don't necessarily have to spend £50 on that. do you have the disk for your operating system? It should be straight forward enough.

 

[Dave7]

Related to your sign in problems?

I dont think so..........I think I simply didnt check the Firefox origin and inadvertantly invited the scam.

 

[Dave7]

Not great, really sorry to hear it. Probably time to change various passwords too, you'd be surprised how much 'leakage' there is when a machine gets compromised.

First thing I will do when I get the computer back........tomorrow I think.

 

[Dave7]

PC World are hardly the experts.

I never mentioned PC world..........it is a small dealer I have known for years

 

[Dave7]

where did you download Firefox from?

i'm sure some folks on here will be able to talk you through wiping the HD and reloading your OS, you don't necessarily have to spend £50 on that. do you have the disk for your operating system? It should be straight forward enough.

Thanks.
TBH I am happier biting the bullet and knowing it is completely & properly done. If I did it (even with help) I would not rest just in case someone can access my system.
I downloaded after googling "Firefox download"..........it looked genuine but as I said, something made me think "hang on-this is not right".

 

[Sbudge]

First thing I will do when I get the computer back........tomorrow I think.

Sorry if I'm stating the obvious here but it'll really pay to be methodical when doing a bulk password change. Create a spreadsheet and note down all the sites/usernames you've changed the password to. Personally I don't include the actual password in the spreadsheet (despite it being encrypted) just a reminder (e.g. Google=Password 'A'). That way as you gradually change passwords you can keep track of what still needs doing etc....and next time you have to do it you can just quickly go through the list.

 

[MontyVeda]

Thanks.
TBH I am happier biting the bullet and knowing it is completely & properly done. If I did it (even with help) I would not rest just in case someone can access my system.
I downloaded after googling "Firefox download"..........it looked genuine but as I said, something made me think "hang on-this is not right".

So long as you have a decent firewall and AV... no one* will access your system. if it's Windows you're installing, you get the option of completely reformatting the HD at the start... that's all you'll be paying 50 quid for.

*in my experience, viruses and malware don't 'beat' your firewall or AV... they're wilfully installed by the user. I've done it, you've done it. We learn through experience

 

[Sbudge]

How long was it between you downloading and realising all was not well? Remember any memory sticks or back-up drives plugged in at the time *may* be suspect. Even things like open files in Dropbox services etc. I know it's unlikely but some of the nastier stuff can be a real pain once it's 'inside'. Make sure you've got decent, up-to-date security software installed straight away on your cleaned PC before plugging any of those storage sources in. Different folk will have different opinions on the best packages. To be honest at different times the best and worst packages seem to vary greatly and there's a lot of strongly held beliefs about which are which. I like BitDefender at the moment but I'd bet someone will come along and say it's rubbish and you should only use Avast etc.

 

[classic33]

I never mentioned PC world..........it is a small dealer I have known for years

It was the £50 mentioned.