Warning: Got hit with a fake malware popup in downtown Austin last week

I was at a coffee shop off Congress Avenue last Tuesday, using their public WiFi, when a full-screen popup appeared saying my system was infected and I needed to call a number. Looked legit with Microsoft branding but the URL was something like 'security-alert-xyz.com'. I closed the browser instead of calling, but my heart was racing. Has anyone else seen these fake popups getting more aggressive lately?

2 comments

2 Comments

parkerb755d ago

The part about the URL being "security-alert-xyz.com" is actually the key thing people miss. That URL is a dead giveaway it's a scam, but here's the angle nobody talks about. Those popups are often made to look like they're from your browser or Windows, but they're actually just a fullscreen website that loaded from a bad ad. If you hit F11 or swipe down on a phone, you can usually see the browser toolbar and close the tab way easier. But the real trick is these scammers are getting smarter by using your location and the coffee shop name to make the warning feel local. That's why it scares you so much. Next time just force quit the browser or restart your laptop, lol, don't even touch the popup buttons.

brian_ward551d ago

Man that coffee shop trick got me last summer at a Starbucks in Austin. I was running late for a meeting and this popup said "SECURITY WARNING - YOUR IP IS COMPROMISED" with the Starbucks logo and everything. I almost panicked but then I remembered I could just hit Ctrl+W on my laptop to close the tab. Worked like a charm. I didn't even have to restart or force quit anything. Now if I see anything sketchy I just mash that keyboard shortcut before my brain even registers the scare tactics.