Cumbria police are warning the public to be aware of bogus telephone calls from fraudsters claiming they are from a company called OnlineTec, in order to gain access to computers.
A number of complaints have been reported from members of the public who have received cold calls from 0208 1441 094. The scammers on the phone ask for remote access to your computer, where they take control, and trick you into handing over money.
This is a similar method used in the popular “Microsoft support” scam that has hit one in five UK households a recent survey by Which? has revealed.
PC Alan Taylor said: “These bogus calls can be very convincing, especially for people who do not know much about computers, and it is important the public is aware of them. My advice is that if you are suspicious of the call, just hang up.
“However people need to be aware that some of these fraud offenders do not disconnect at their end of the call, and will pretend to be from a legitimate company to endorse the fraudulent company when you try to check. Ensure you have completely disconnected from the last call before trying to verify if the company is legitimate.”
For further information please visit the Cumbria police website.
Please note that Action Fraud is not responsible for the content of external websites.
To report a fraud and receive a police crime reference number, call Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or use our online fraud reporting tool.
Related links
Watch out for scams that use Microsoft’s name
Bogus Microsoft Engineers strike again
Alert – fraudster claiming to be from Action Fraud
