Tech Support Scams: Fake Virus Warnings, Pop-Ups, and Calls Saying Your Computer Is Infected

What a tech support scam is

A tech support scam is a fake warning, call, or message that says something is wrong with your computer and pushes you to contact a “technician” who will fix it. The technician is the scammer. The goal is to get remote access to your computer, a payment for a useless repair, or access to your bank accounts.

The scammers use the names of well-known companies such as Microsoft, Apple, and Geek Squad. Those companies are not the authors of these scams. Their names are borrowed because people trust them, and Microsoft and Apple both publish warnings for their own customers. The FTC’s guide How To Spot, Avoid, and Report Tech Support Scams describes the usual entry points: a pop-up that looks like it comes from a known company, a call or text from someone posing as a technician, and fake support numbers placed in search results and online ads.

These scams cause large losses. In the FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report, tech and customer support fraud accounted for more than $2.1 billion in reported losses, the third largest category after investment fraud and business email compromise. People aged 60 and over filed 21,333 of those complaints. Anyone can receive these warnings, and the people behind them are the only ones at fault.

What the fake virus warning looks like

The fake warning is a web page made to look like a message from your computer’s system. It often fills the whole screen, plays a loud alarm or a recorded voice, and shows a phone number to call. It comes from a website, not from your computer.

Microsoft’s page Protect yourself from tech support scams describes pages that put the browser in full-screen mode, show pop-ups that will not go away, play audio messages, and can even disable Task Manager, all to make the warning seem to come from Windows. Microsoft states that its real error and warning messages never include a phone number.

Here is a warning we wrote to show the pattern. It does not copy any real company’s screen.

The FTC’s alert on urgent security messages sums it up: security pop-ups from real tech companies will never ask you to call a phone number.

How to close a pop-up that locks your screen

Close the browser tab or the whole browser window, and do not call the number. The warning is a web page, so closing the page removes it. Apple’s guidance on recognizing scams says the same about pop-ups that warn of viruses: do not call the number or follow the links, and simply navigate away from the page or close the window or tab.

If the page will not let you close it:

• On Windows, press Ctrl, Alt, and Delete together and choose Task Manager, then end the browser. If the page has blocked Task Manager, as Microsoft says some do, hold the power button until the computer turns off and then turn it back on.
• On a Mac, press Option, Command, and Esc together to open the Force Quit window and quit the browser, as Apple explains, or restart the computer from the Apple menu.
• When the browser opens again, do not reopen or restore the tabs from the last session, since that can bring the same page back.

In Microsoft Edge, the scareware blocker is designed to catch these pages as they appear. When it detects one, Edge exits full-screen mode, stops the audio, and offers to close the page. Microsoft says it is on by default for most users and explains how to check whether it is on for your computer.

If you only saw the warning, closed it, and did not call or install anything, the page itself usually leaves nothing behind. If you are still worried, run the security scan that came with your computer, which the FTC suggests as the way to check for a real problem.

The call, email, or search result that leads to fake support

Not every tech support scam starts with a pop-up. Some start with a call from someone who says they work for a known tech company and have detected a virus on your computer. Hang up. Microsoft says it does not make unsolicited calls to offer technical support, and Apple says that if you get a suspicious call from someone claiming to be Apple Support, you should just hang up.

Other versions reach people in these ways:

• Fake renewal notices. The FTC describes emails or texts saying you were charged hundreds of dollars to renew a tech support subscription, using names like Geek Squad, McAfee, and Norton, with a number to call within 24 hours to dispute it. Those companies are imitated too. Our guide to refund scams covers what happens after that call, when the “refund” is followed by a request to pay back an overpayment.
• Search results and ads. The FTC warns that scammers place their own numbers in search results for tech support and run display ads. A number found through a search is not proof that it belongs to the company.
• Texts and chat messages. Microsoft notes that support scams can also arrive by email, text, or chat, with links that lead to the same fake warning pages.

To reach real support, start from something you already trust: the company’s official website typed by you, the help menu inside the software, the receipt from the store where you bought the computer, or someone you know. The FTC also points out that stores that sell computer equipment often offer support in person.

What real tech companies and agencies do and never do

The quickest way to check a warning or a call is to compare it with what the real organization has said in writing. This table puts those statements side by side.

Any contact that breaks one of these rules can be ended right there. You do not need to know how the scam works to hang up or close the page.

When the “technician” passes you to your bank or the government

The most costly version does not stop at a repair fee. The fake technician says your bank account has been hacked and passes you to a fake bank employee, and sometimes to a fake government agent, who tells you to move your savings to a “safe” account. The FBI calls this the Phantom Hacker scam.

In its public service announcement on Phantom Hacker scams, the FBI describes three phases. First, a fake technician gets remote access, pretends to run a scan, and asks you to open your financial accounts, which shows them which account holds the most money. Then a fake fraud department employee says a foreign hacker got in and that the money must go to a safe third-party account, sometimes presented as one at the Federal Reserve. Last, a fake government employee may send an official-looking letter to keep you convinced. You are told not to tell anyone the real reason for moving the money.

The FTC’s tech support guide describes the same turn, with a scammer who claims your name is linked to serious crimes and says the money must be withdrawn, placed in a “federal safety locker”, or turned into gold or cash handed to someone. There is no such locker. The FBI’s 2025 report counted about 725 complaints about couriers sent to collect cash and precious metals from victims of tech support and government impersonation scams, with $311.8 million in losses.

Our guide to impostor scams explains why the fake bank and the fake agent follow the same script.

What to do if you let them into your computer

Disconnect the computer from the internet right away, then call your bank from a different phone or device using a number you look up yourself. After that, clean the computer and change your passwords from a device the scammer never touched.

1. Cut the connection now. Turn off Wi-Fi or unplug the network cable. The remote session ends when the computer is offline. Do not answer if they call back.
2. Call your bank and card issuers. Tell them someone had remote access to your computer, especially if you opened your bank account while they were connected. Ask them to watch for transfers and to block cards if needed. The steps in what to do when your bank account is hacked give the order of the first hour.
3. Change passwords from another device, starting with your email, then banking and anything that shares a password. Turn on two-step verification. The FTC lists this among the steps for anyone who gave a scammer access to a computer.
4. Remove what they installed. Microsoft advises uninstalling any application the scammers asked you to install, which usually includes the remote access program.
5. Update and scan. Install all security updates and run a full scan with your security software, such as Windows Security. Delete anything it flags.
6. Consider a reset if fake warnings keep coming back. Microsoft notes that resetting the device takes time but may be the best option in some cases. A local repair shop you already trust can help.
7. If you paid, call the card issuer to dispute the charge, as Microsoft suggests. For other payment methods, the FTC’s page What To Do if You Were Scammed explains how to ask for your money back from each one.
8. If you gave your Social Security number, go to IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan.

Getting money back is not guaranteed and depends on the payment method and how quickly you act. Card charges can be disputed with the issuer. Gift cards, wire transfers, and cryptocurrency are much harder to recover, which is why the FTC says scammers ask for them. If the remote access happened on a phone, see how to know if your phone is hacked for the checks that apply there.

Where to report a tech support scam

Report it to the FTC and to the FBI, and to the company whose name was used. Reporting helps even if you did not lose money.

• The FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. The FTC uses reports to build cases against scammers.
• The FBI at ic3.gov. Include the name the caller used, the phone numbers and websites, and the account numbers where money was sent, as the FBI asks.
• Microsoft accepts reports of tech support scams at microsoft.com/reportascam, whether or not the scammers claimed to be from Microsoft.
• Apple asks that suspicious emails claiming to be from Apple be forwarded to [email protected].

People aged 60 and over who want help filing can call the Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-372-8311, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern. Our guide on how to report a scam and try to recover your money covers the rest of the reporting order.

Tech support scam FAQ