CLAYTON – Internet scammers stole thousands of dollars from two Johnston County brothers.
One of the victims was on their home computer recently when they saw a pop up screen that stated “Security Alert”. The message urged them to immediately contact a telephone number provided to reach Microsoft.
The victim called the number and was convinced by the scammers his computer was infected with a virus and needed to give the imposter remote access to his computer.
After doing so, the fraudster removed $5,100 from the victim’s bank account. They were also able to obtain access to his brothers bank account and withdraw $12,000 from his account. A total of $17,100 was stolen from the men, both in their 20’s.
It is unlikely authorities can recover the stolen funds.
I can’t believe people still fall for the “microsoft pop-up” scam!!! Please people, get educated on the MANY different scams. The criminals in other countries are making billions every year by stealing from us. Individuals with the knowledge to not fall for these scams, is the only way they’ll stop. Our laws can’t save us from them, we must save ourselves.