Pop-Up Panic

We had a recent call from someone who got hit with one of those nasty scam pop-ups—the kind that freezes your computer, blasts alarms, and says to call Microsoft at the number on the screen.
Spoiler alert: it wasn’t Microsoft. It was a scammer.

Unfortunately, they called before realizing something felt off. That’s when they reached out to us. We remoted in, checked everything thoroughly, and made sure there were no viruses, ransomware, malware, or leftover remote access hiding behind the scenes.

During the cleanup, they joked that we didn’t need to explain it: “I’m not going to know what you’re talking about anyway.”

But our tech explained things anyway—what we were doing, what we were looking for, and why it mattered.

Why? Because we keep the human in IT. We never want anyone to feel like we’re just clicking around for fun. Taking a few extra moments to walk someone through it builds confidence and clarity—and shows we’re the good guys (and the difference between us and the scammers), not just another voice on the other end of a screen.

By the end, they said, “I didn’t understand most of it, but I appreciate why you explained it—thank you.”
That’s the moment we love. 🙌

What to do if this happens to you:
🚫 Don’t call the number. It’s not Microsoft.
🔇 Don’t panic—those alarms are fake, designed to scare you.
🛑 If you can, shut your computer down right away.
🧠 If the pop-up won’t let you close it or your mouse is locked, hold the power button down for 10 seconds to force a shutdown.
🔍 Then call someone you trust (like us!) to take a look.

Cyber scammers are tricky—but you don’t have to figure it out alone. We’re here to help, and we’ll always make sure you’re in the loop every step of the way.