Computer fraudsters con Dunloy man

The man, who does not wish to be named, answered a telephone call and during the subsequent conversation, he broke the golden rule of divulging information about his computer that enabled the caller to gain access to it.

He had been told that he had a number of viruses on his machine and that the only way to remove them was to provide them with certain details.

A day later he returned to his machine and found the cursor key moving across the screen by someone who had no authorisation to do so.

The man was understandably concerned about what was happening and immediately sought the help of friends for a way out of the dilemma.

He was sent a programme designed to remove viruses and clear any other issues.

The man told the Times: “I feel daft. I know that I shouldn’t have told them anything about the computer but I can assure you it won’t happen again. It was like an invasion of my privacy or even a burglary. There in my living room was someone who was rummaging around my personal details and I could do nothing about it.

“It’s something I won’t forget in a hurry and I would urge anyone else who find themselves in the same circumstances to hang up if they get a similar call.

“The more I thought about it I know that a reputable company such as Microsoft would never do such a thing. They were clearly hoaxers who perhaps wanted to see if they could steal money from me which they didn’t.”