When talking about cybersecurity, we instantly think of viruses and malware. But advances in personal computer security have made it much harder for hackers to infect your PC through traditional channels like email.
As a result, they have developed new attack methods to get around your defences using a range of techniques, on and off-line. One of the most used and also successful is the “Technical Support Scam” that combines social engineering and technology to empty a victim’s bank account.
What is the Technical Support Scam?
Social engineering relies on building trust with a victim, before tricking them into doing something that gets around their security defences. In the case of the Support Scam, criminals telephone their victims pretending to be from a reputable business, like Microsoft or your security or telephone provider – a company name you recognize.
Posing as an engineer, <the hacker informs their target that they have already fallen victim to criminals, and they must take urgent action to plug the security gap. The victim is asked to visit a webpage from their computer, and to download a remote control tool that will allow the engineer to access their system to perform “repair work”.
Once in control of the computer, the “engineer” may call up the computer’s event log and show a number of scary looking (but completely harmless) alerts. They will then suggest downloading further tools that allow them to fix these errors.
Unfortunately these tools are actually malware that will steal valuable information from the victim’s computer – particularly online banking details and passwords. The victim may feel that the engineer has done them a favor, but the reality is that they have invited the hacker to steal from them.
Avoiding Phone Scam
There are several ways you can protect yourself from becoming a victim of this scam. These four tips will help keep you safe:
1. Use your common sense
Microsoft or Panda Security (for example) never ring customers to inform them of security problems. These companies may provide assistance by telephone, but they never call you first. In fact, unless you pay for a third party technical support service, no one should call you about problems with your computer or router.
No matter how urgent the issue sounds, anyone claiming to be calling about PC security problems is lying.
2.Protect your personal and sensitive information
Never give your account numbers or passwords to anyone over the phone or the Internet unless you are 100% sure who they are. If you are in any doubt at all, hang up. Keep in mind that fraudulent activities are profitable for the bad guys.
A good rule to follow for any incoming call: never hand over your credit card or bank details. Just don’t do it!
3. If you have a doubt: tell everyone about it
The Telephone Support Scam preys on people’s insecurity about their lack of tech knowledge. It is very easy to be a victim, and the best defence is sharing knowledge – telling other people about this scam, and what the criminals are doing. It is much easier to put the phone down if you know that the call is a scam.
You should also consider reporting the scam to the company being investigated. If you do, make sure you find the right details though.
4. Protect your PC in advance
Do not forget to use antivirus protection for all your devices. If your device is protected by an anti-malware toolkit, it will not be generating security errors online or anywhere else. So you know that someone claiming you have a problem is also lying.
If your computer does not have an up-to-date security toolkit installed, you must act now – download Panda Free Antivirus to get started.
Most social engineering attacks can be avoided by taking a second to think through the implications of what you are being told. You must not allow yourself to be bullied into making what could be a very costly mistake.
For more useful tips and advice about staying safe online, please check out the Panda Security knowledge base.
57 comments
3 CALLS A DAY FROM “PANDA” TRYING TO ACCESS COMPUTER!!!!
Hi John,
We are sorry about that It looks like you have been the subject of a phishing or scam call from individuals pretending to be members of the Panda Security support team. We can assure you that Panda Security has no relation whatsoever in regards to this matter.
Therefore, we strongly recommend you follow the instructions below, in order to report this situation to the competent authorities, so they can tackle the issue as soon as possible.
National Do Not Call List
Avoid phone scams by registering your home and cell phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry or by calling 1-888-382-1222. This national registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. It won’t stop all unsolicited calls—but will help stop most.
Report Telephone Fraud
If you believe you have been a victim of a telephone scam or telemarketing fraud, you can file an online complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), or by phone at 1-877-382-4357.
Regards,
Panda Security
HI… I have had several calls from a scam org professing to be Panda reps.They have been using the following numbers: 281-325-5655-9, 879-128-7074 (multiple times yesterday), 011-281-325-5655 9, 508-496-5638, 931-223-0288, 508-496-5638, 844-900-7097, 813-255-6559, 508-496-5638, 1-877-689-9794, 314-214-6589, 720-898-9110 and several others in the last month.
Cheers
Bill Potter
Dear BIll,
It looks like you have been the subject of a phishing or scam call from individuals pretending to be members of the Panda Security support team. We can assure you that Panda Security has no relation whatsoever in regards to this matter.
Therefore, we strongly recommend you follow the instructions below, in order to report this situation to the competent authorities, so they can tackle the issue as soon as possible.
National Do Not Call List
Avoid phone scams by registering your home and cell phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry or by calling 1-888-382-1222. This national registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. It won’t stop all unsolicited calls—but will help stop most.
Report Telephone Fraud
If you believe you have been a victim of a telephone scam or telemarketing fraud, you can file an online complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), or by phone at 1-877-382-4357.
Regards,
Panda Security
In the last six days, I received at least 30 calls from someone who said he was from Panda,
Two of the numbers are 1-281-325-5614; 2-813-255-6556 and another number I don’t remember with area code 547.
They just don’t stop. Sometimes, I answer and I speak to them in french, they hang up and call again,
I know it is not your company but I tought I woukd let you know.
Thanks for letting us know Louis!
As you have already mentioned, these scammers have no relation with Panda Security. Please follow the instructions that we provide on the post and we will keep fighting these scammers.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I usually get calls from “Microsoft” saying that I have a virus or problem with my system, and I get insensed and tell them that my son is my IT Pro, and that they are liars and not to call again or the Ohio AG would be my next conversation. I know better!
Hi Christopher,
Thanks for your comment. You are doing the right thing, please follow our tips in order to fight these scammers.
Best regards,
Panda Security,
Bjr a vous tous pourquoi mon antivurs ne donne pas
Bonjour Emma,
Si vous avez des problèmes techniques, svp contactez notre équipe sur https://www.pandasecurity.com/fr/support/
Merci!
I have been getting lots of calls, about 15 a day from someone that says they are from Panda. I have requested many times they not call again. They are not using the same phone number every time. When I tell them to take me off their calling list, the phone immediately hang up and I get a busy signal
Hi Mary!
Thanks for your message! We are sorry you are being victim of these scammers. We can assure you that Panda Security has no relation whatsoever in regards to this matter.
Therefore, we strongly recommend you follow the instructions below, in order to report this situation to the competent authorities, so they can tackle the issue as soon as possible.
National Do Not Call List
Avoid phone scams by registering your home and cell phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry or by calling 1-888-382-1222. This national registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. It won’t stop all unsolicited calls—but will help stop most.
Report Telephone Fraud
If you believe you have been a victim of a telephone scam or telemarketing fraud, you can file an online complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), or by phone at 1-877-382-4357.
Regards,
Panda Security
I’ve had several calls from those claiming to work for Microsoft. As I run Linux I simply inform them that I don’t have a Microsoft machine, that I know they are scamming, that I’ve traced their call and am forwarding the information to the FBI. This usually gets the desired quick hang up. I have, in the past, had some fun at the expense of the scammer by completely frustrating them with inept keystrokes and extremely slow typing, never getting to the point of loading any of their software. I had a scammer on the line for over 20 minutes and he finally hung up. Been a while since I’ve heard from them.
Hi Mark,
Thanks for your message! As you mention Panda Security is not the only company affected by the tech support scam. You did the right thing! Hopefully they will leave you alone now.
We will keep fighting on our side to stop them.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I had this happen last year. I got a popup saying my computer has been hacked and for me to not reboot or all information on my HDD would be lost. There was a toll free number in the popup. Turns out it was a company called Software Maniacs scamming me to pay for a repair when they only installed some free antivirus software on my machine. Well, I fell for it, but my credit card company could not get the money back because there was no proof of anything underhanded. They said this kind of thing happens all the time.
Hello David,
Thank you for your message. As you said, unfortunately this happens all the time, so it is important to create awareness so users don’t fall for it.
We are sorry you had to experience it.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
Panda is the worst software ever devised my mankind. I get at least 3 calls a day from scammers attempting to get me to allow them access to my computer. I have 4 computers, each with a different form of protection. I get no calls from those software manufacturers. Someone has hacked your customer database and is using it to contact your customers. I would never use Panda again. In fact, I think your whole software package is a scam.
Hi Bill,
We are sorry you feel this way, but we guarantee you we have no relation with these scammers and we are working to stop them. We don’t get anything positive from this, but bad reputation and we want the best for our clients and have a positive opinion from them. This situation affects us and many other companies.
It is for that reason that we make it public to create awareness and users to fall into it.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
In fact, it’s not my responsibility to stop these scammers by listing my phone number on a no-call list. It’s your responsibility to find out how these people breached your data base and stop them NOW.
Hi Bill,
Panda Security has no relation whatsover with these scammers and the scam does not only affect us but other big companies like Microsoft, Google, Amazon or Norton to mention a few. We guarantee this scammers have not breached our database. There are many other ways to find out if someone is a Panda Security client such as:
• Trojan (virus) that infects machines / devices and collects information from installed programs.
• Data theft of internet provider clients, mail provider for hacked or illegal data sale.
• Sale of user databases in the deep web.
• Previous survey from a third party website.
• Database from the sales channel.
• They simply do not know it, but with two indirect questions they get it from the person on the phone.
• Publication of a page with a phone and advertising type Panda antivirus support, whether you surf or call you know that you have a relationship with Panda.
We are really sorry about this inconvenient and we assure you were legally fighting them so it can stop, but we need to spread the voice so users don’t fall on this trap.
Thank you for your comment!
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I have received at least 30 plus calls from a man, who speaks broken English, but uses an American name to identify himself. He says he is from Panda Antivirus and that he sees a lot of error messages on my computer. Sometimes a lady, who speaks broken English, will call. The #’s are 1-844-358-1563, 1-813-255-6559 or 6557, 1-879-128-7074, Private calls, and from a man with caller I.D. of Grace Silva, 508-496-5638. I tell him or her I just renewed my Panda, and to please not call me again; but they still persist.
Hi Adele,
Thanks a lot for this info! Having those numbers will help us to fight them!
We strongly recommend you follow the instructions below, in order to report this situation to the competent authorities, so they can tackle the issue as soon as possible.
National Do Not Call List
Avoid phone scams by registering your home and cell phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry or by calling 1-888-382-1222. This national registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. It won’t stop all unsolicited calls—but will help stop most.
Report Telephone Fraud
If you believe you have been a victim of a telephone scam or telemarketing fraud, you can file an online complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), or by phone at 1-877-382-4357.
Regards,
Panda Security
I am upset with Panda Security themselves, because it is their server that got hacked with all their customer information like phone numbers, etc. and then the scammers call here like they are from Panda Security and it is hard to tell that they are not until they start talking disrespectfully and it is more of a feeling than anything, and then Panda charges your for reinstalling their product that got hacked providing hackers with our information. My thought is when my virus protection is up not to renew with Panda.
Hi Wendy,
We can assure you our server has not been hacked. There are many way in which these scammers can identify Panda Security customers without hacking the company:
• Trojan (virus) that infects machines / devices and collects information from installed programs.
• Data theft of internet provider clients, mail provider for hacked or illegal data sale.
• Sale of user databases in the deep web.
• Previous survey from a third party website.
• Database from the sales channel.
• They simply do not know it, but with two indirect questions they get it from the person on the phone.
• Publication of a page with a phone and advertising type Panda antivirus support, whether you surf or call you know that you have a relationship with Panda.
Please bare in mind these scammers have NO relation with us, we strongly recommend you follow the instructions below, in order to report this situation to the competent authorities, so they can tackle the issue as soon as possible.
National Do Not Call List
Avoid phone scams by registering your home and cell phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry or by calling 1-888-382-1222. This national registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. It won’t stop all unsolicited calls—but will help stop most.
Report Telephone Fraud
If you believe you have been a victim of a telephone scam or telemarketing fraud, you can file an online complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), or by phone at 1-877-382-4357.
Regards,
Panda Security
Just wanted to post that I have been using Panda for several years now. And I also have gotten my family and friends to do the same. I know it can happen because it was happening to a family member and the other day it happened to one of my Mom’s friends. She didn’t take the bait. My family member didn’t either. I have put Panda on both their machines. No more calls so far. As for myself. I have NEVER had any problems with people calling or e-mailing me. I did when I used other programs in the past. I work on computers so I try to keep mine as safe as I can. And I also recommend Panda to everyone. I will go a step further in saying this. CNet and a few other websites I really like have only one problem in my book. Many times they have people that study and rate anti-virus programs. Panda is always in the Top 10. But not where they really belong. They have put Kaspersky ahead of Panda before. I have used it before. Have had friends use it before. But replaced them very quickly. I can’t believe Norton is still even out there. Not only does it not stop some of the littlest things; but it’s also a “Memory Hog”. Not saying this just because I love it for myself. I’m saying it because credit needs to be given to any company that works as hard as Panda does in keeping our computers safe. And their anti-virus software continues to get better every year. Thank you Panda.
WOW Janet!
Thanks a lot for your kind words to Panda! We REALLY appreciate it!
We apologize about this incident your family has gone thorugh, but we have no relation whatsover with these scammers and we are fighting agaisnt them to end this situation.
Thanks a lot for trusting Panda Security to protect your devices!!
If you have 5 mins we would appreciate if you could leave us a review on trustpilot.com/review/www.pandasecurity.com
Best regards,
Panda Security.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I was duped by scammers clameing to be windows security tech and that I had all of vires then when I would not give them any money they blocked my laptop and I have to take it in to be cleaned up
Hi Alfred!
Please, never give access to anyone you don’t know to your computer. No serious company will contact you on the phone pretending to provide tech support in exchange of money.
Remember to report these cases.
Thank you!
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I estimate that I have received 600 calls the past 3 months from these scammers who have indian accents with American names. 20 calls a day sometimes. Cell phone, my work phone. They refuse to quit no matter what I tell them. And when I tell them they are scammers they began to swear at me with vulgar names. They refused to stop even knowing they would not get me to do what they want. It just made no sense and became incomprehensible.
Hi Steve,
We understand this issue is very annoying and trust us we are doing what we can to stop it as this is not good for our company or for any of the many other companies that are suffering the same fraud.
We are sorry about it, we can assure you that Panda Security has no relation whatsoever in regards to this matter.
Therefore, we strongly recommend you follow the instructions below, in order to report this situation to the competent authorities, so they can tackle the issue as soon as possible.
National Do Not Call List
Avoid phone scams by registering your home and cell phone numbers with the National Do Not Call Registry or by calling 1-888-382-1222. This national registry was created to offer consumers a choice regarding telemarketing calls. It won’t stop all unsolicited calls—but will help stop most.
Report Telephone Fraud
If you believe you have been a victim of a telephone scam or telemarketing fraud, you can file an online complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), or by phone at 1-877-382-4357.
Regards,
Panda Security
Same here, I have received numerous calls daily referencing Panda. This is probably because Panda has the best free antivirus and the people doing this know it! I just simply took my phone off the hook, for a while and it stopped. It is nice to have a cell phone!
Hi Chris,
We are sorry about that, but as we have mentioned we have no relation whatsover with these scammer and we are as appalled as you are. We are fighting to get to the end of this.
We apologize for this inconvenient and bigh THANK YOU for trusting Panda Security to protect your devices!!
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I have used panda free protection for approx. 3 yrs. Never had a problem with calls or emails. No problems whatsoever with security. I am very satisfied with Panda.
Wow! Thanks a lot for your comment Gerald!
We are glad you are satisfied with our software. If you have 5 mins, could you please leave us a review on trustpilot.com/review/www.pandasecurity.com
Thanks!
Best regards,
Panda Security.
Wow, you are getting a lot of Emails who have had trouble with scammers who are having calls from people who are pretending to be Panda. I wonder now, just how safe is Panda? Everyone should rethink using Panda perhaps?
Hi Neil,
There has been no security flaws within Panda Security. It is just people who call randomly pretending to be Panda Security, but they do the same with other tech companies such as Microsoft, Yahoo or Kaspersky.
Regards,
Panda Security
I derive part of my income (an honest income) selling services that clean up the wreckage left by these scammers and installing reputable commercial software to help prevent recurrence. I’ve seldom seen a scareware attack that wasn’t the result of social engineering. If you choose to maintain your own security, do your homework and learn how. Here are a few tips:
1 – Don’t download your security software from CNET, Twocows or any of these other online market places. I’ve found malware links on most of them. Fine for reviews but type in the corporate URL when you’ve decided.
2 – Don’t rely on Windows Defender.
3 – Turn on automatic updates and scans and adjust to suit your schedule.
4 – Remember, no reputable company will contact you with a pop-up, email, phone call or message to tell you your system is compromised. I the contact is in your browser, close the browser immediately. Reopen it. It should act normally. If not, you have likely downloaded malware.
5 – If you don’t understand any portion of what I’ve just said, contract with a certified tech to manage your security.
BTW, I use Panda on my Linux machines to prevent spreading malware to the Windows systems on my network. What’s up with the difficulty installing it on Linux Mint? It’s super easy on Lubuntu.
Hi Tom,
If you experience technical difficulties with our software please contact us on support.pandasecurity.com
Best regards,
Panda Security.
Thanks for your comment Tom!
We really appreciate your recommendations!
Best regards,
Panda Security.
Hello, Neat post. Thede is a problem along with your web site in web explorer, may test this?
IE still is thhe marketplace leader and a good section of other folks will misxs your fantastic writing due to this problem.
Hi,
Thanks for your comment, we will take a look at it.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I have had Panda antivirus and have found it to be very effective; it often blocks a site saying that the site is known for trying to get information from me.
I will say that recently a Microsoft box appeared on my screen saying to call them which I did: the phone was answered by Microsoft employees and they did have to fix whatever had happened. They told me I could protect my computer by enrolling in 2 programs. At this point I told them NO and he did warn me not to give any information out as I was vulnerable.
I guess in retrospect I should have ignored the Microsoft box and called you at Panda.
Hi Pam!
We are glad you trust us and that you refused to them. Please check our support numbers in our website (https://www.pandasecurity.com/)and avoid those that you may find in sites of dubious reputation.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
I always used panda antivirus they are protected to my laptop from malware. I personally recommend to everyone please it……
They can easily fix your technical issues.
https://yahoocustomerservice.co/
Got a call a few minutes ago, from 1-424-282-9285 claiming to be Panda technical support team, about a security flaw that needs to be fixed, they had my name, phone number and apparently Panda ID. Spoke to me as if I knew nothing about computers, tried to have me run Execute, cmd, and the command assoc, at that point I told them i believed it is a scam an hung up. They called back quickly but the line was too bad and he hung up. Said they are not authorized to send me emails ! Is this from Panda, and if not how did they get my info !??
Hi Richard,
That number does not correspond to Panda Security, these scammers have developed new attack methods to get around your defences using a range of techniques, on and off-line. They might get your details from social media, publics forums or via phishing. We assure you that your customer data in Panda is very well protected.
We recommend you to follow the steps we mention in the post. You did well by not providing more details to them.
Thanks a lot for reading us and choosing Panda to protect your devices.
Kind regards,
Panda Security.
The only fricken way possible for these people to target me is if they hacked my personal email, name, phone number, etc out of Panda. Christ one of them today was cursing at me. A security company that cannot even keep its customer’s data safe. That is pathetic.
Hello,
We are sorry you are experiencing this by scammers pretending to be from Panda. Panda Security has not experienced any data breaches nor anyone has been hacked out of Panda. Scammers can use many things available in Social Media to their advantage, not only your phone number:
– Email addresses
– Phone numbers
– Home address
– Company address
– Any other unique information that you put in Social Media or other sites that ask for your data.
This affects almost every company, you can more information by Googling “Technical support scam”, it even has an entry on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_support_scam
That’s why it is important to report it to the authorities and follow the steps we mention on it.
If you give us the phone number that are calling you we can report it. The only official numbers are the ones that appear on our website: https://www.pandasecurity.com and we never call our customers, only when they have contacted us before and need extra support.
We hope this helps.
Kind regards,
Panda Security.
Pretty rich that you guys would claim not to have anything to do with these tech support scams. The FTC would say otherwise. It’s well known that Advanced Tech Support sells your product. Also, it’s been published that they got hacked, so thousands of people that bought Panda from them will get calls like this. Why do you still do business with Advanced Tech Support after they got busted by the FTC and paid millions in fines for running one of the biggest tech support scams ever? Smells like you two make a lot of money together.
Hello Jesus,
Advanced Tech Support resells Panda Security products.But we want to make it very clear that we are not scammers, nor do we support these types of activities to the extent of the law. In fact, we denounce them every day. However, as a company we must and must comply with the agreements signed and Panda strictly complies with the law in the United States of America, as in the rest of the world.
If Panda Security had suffered any kind of security breaches, we and the relevant authorities would make them public.
Greetings,
Panda Security.
A technical support trick is a type of Internet extortion that is as of now picking up energy on the Internet. And of course thanks for sharing a great information.
My company install the Panda antivirus by using my credit card last year, why it will automatically renew without my consent. Is that means my credit card is been stealing. Please check the Transaction code T67840
Please contact us at renewals@pandasecurity.com
Our team will be able to help you.
Best regards,
Panda Security.
Thanks for sharing this is very helpful for me.
The email i got to confirm my Panda account was unencrypted. Can scammers get access to personal information via an unencrypted email?
Thanks for sharing its really helpful for me