Your device has been hacked! A fraudulent call steals thousands of euros from a victim in Telfs
A woman from the Tyrol region of Austria received a surprising message on her computer on Wednesday claiming that her device had been 'hacked'. The warning urged her to call a number supposedly belonging to Microsoft support. She thought the warning was real, so she followed the instructions.
When she called the number, a man claiming to be a technician ready to help her 'secure' the device answered. In a calm and convincing tone, he succeeded in persuading her to allow him remote access to her device to fix the alleged problem.
After gaining access, the perpetrator — whose identity remains unknown — was able to take full control of her device. Without the victim realizing what was happening, the criminal began navigating through her system and accessing her online bank account.
Within minutes, the scammer transferred several thousand euros from her account to his. The victim did not understand what had happened until after the transfers were completed and her balance had significantly decreased.
Authorities later warned the public about similar fake security messages, confirming that companies like Microsoft never ask for remote access or request users to call numbers that appear in unexpected pop-up windows.