FTC, States Act to Stop Tech-Support Consumer Scams Involving Millions of Dollars

With more than 96,000 complaints about tech support scams reported since 2015, the FTC said it's ramping up actions against companies that deceive consumers into thinking their computers are infected with malware and then charge them hundreds of dollars to fix nonexistent problems. At a Friday news conference in Tampa, Florida, FTC Consumer Protection Bureau acting Director Thomas Pahl and Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that Operation Tech Trap -- with federal, state and international law enforcement agencies -- resulted in 16 new actions, including complaints, indictments, guilty pleas and settlements, against these scams in the past few weeks, bringing actions to 29 over the past year (see 1507310027, 1510200050 and 1610170020). Consumer losses from the scams so far have totaled more than $24.6 million, said Pahl. He said consumers browsing the internet get a pop-up message telling them their computer is infected with a virus or has another security problem. The message urges them to call a toll-free number, which connects them to telemarketers, usually located in India, who say they're certified or authorized by Apple or Microsoft to fix the problems. The scammers are allowed to remotely access the computer, diagnose it and supposedly fix it at a cost of $200 to $300. He said Apple, Microsoft and other companies gave the commission affidavits that they have nothing to do with such operations, making it easier to prosecute. Such scams began several years ago when telemarketers cold called consumers to buy services, a scam that has evolved into pop-up messages, said Pahl. Complaints to the FTC have increased year over year, including a 13 percent hike from 2015 to 2016 about the scams, which have also grown in sophistication, he added. Pahl said the 96,000 complaints are the "tip of the iceberg" since many go unreported and scripts are becoming "far more slick," misleading more people and making it harder to prosecute. Bondi said personal data is at risk from these scams, which can also leave devices inoperable. She said the scams "damage consumer confidence" and undermine trust in using the internet for transactions. Pahl said the agency recently acted against a company falsely offering tech support services on behalf of the FTC. He called this a scam "trying to injure people twice, which indicates just how pernicious this behavior is." Officials said consumer education and more reporting to law enforcement agencies are the only way to stop such scams.