MONEY

Scammer says Uncle Sam sent him

Bill Moak
Consumer Watch

Scammers have many ways to get past our defenses and initial skepticism, and they love nothing more than to tell you they’re working on behalf of the government. In recent years, we’ve seen scammers call people claiming to be with the Internal Revenue Service, the Social Security Administration, even local court officials.

These nefarious schemes have tricked thousands into divulging personal information, granting access to bank accounts and credit cards, and believing they were about to be arrested because they hadn’t reported for jury duty or had failed to make payments on time.

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At the same time, tech-support scammers have been busy as well, deceiving unwitting computer users into believing their computers had been hijacked by fraudsters and offering a solution, only to find that it was a lie. It turns out that one man has allegedly turned his creative skills to combining both scams into one.

This week, the Federal Trade Commission announced they’d filed a preliminary injunction against a Florida man named Daniel “Danny” Croft and his “alleged, fictitious businesses,” PC Guru Tech Support and Elite Tech Support, after the agency alleged he’d duped consumers into believing the FTC had hired him. According to the FTC’s news release, Croft contacted computer users and claimed the FTC had retained his services to help them remove malware that had been installed on their computers by companies that the FTC had shut down. In reality, the agency charged, he was just using fear to get customers to contact him so he could sell them his services.

Just as a reminder, the FTC is a large federal agency (created in 1914) tasked with helping protect consumers and promote fair competition among businesses. The agency stays busy going after various types of scams and rip-offs. It is headed by a five-member panel, the members of which are nominated by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

According to the complaint, the scheme began in July. Croft began sending emails to consumers with the subject line including “spyware was put on your computer” by two companies named “Fast Fix 123” or “One Bit IT” — company names that he had allegedly used in the past. The emails reportedly claimed the two companies had been shut down by the FTC. To add authenticity to the claim, the emails included fake FTC press releases and the names of agency staffers.

The FTC says it had never taken action against either company, nor had it authorized Croft or anyone to solicit such business on its behalf. The injunction requires Croft to cease activities associated with the scheme and turn over documents for its investigation.

“The FTC doesn’t hire companies to contact people and give technical support,” wrote FTC blogger Will Maxson. “If you get a pop up, call, spam email or any other urgent message — from anyone — about a virus on your computer, stop. Don’t click on any links, don’t send any money, and don’t give anyone control of your computer. The person behind the message probably wants access to your computer to grab your data, install malware, or sell you unnecessary services. Please report those messages at ftc.gov/complaint.”

Contact Bill Moak at moakconsumer@gmail.com.