Security Alert

[KD]

After the usual generalities, I will inquire if their name is Peter Puffer (for male callers, Petra for female), and if they don't hang up quickly, the conversation goes downhill rapidly from there. I derive greater amusement from it than I should, but hey, they called me...

 

[Elio Amazed]

If you start talking about their mothers, they'll flip out and call you every name in the book.
That's a true litmus test. Also, air horns make their day.

 

[Mel]

The best one I ever did was one evening we had just finished dinner. The man calling asked if I own my home at (my address). I said Yes. He said he was calling about storm windows. I told him we didn't have bad storms and wasn't interested. He then explained that he meant insulating windows. I told him I had stuffed fiberglass in all my windows and that worked great. He got upset and told me I shouldn't be so obstinate. I then told him that I was upset because he had insinuated that he had been out to see my house at (my address). He said, what makes you think that I haven't been out there. I told him that if he HAD been out here, he would know that I live in an experimental, underground house that has no windows. He hung up!

He started it!

 

[RUCRAYZE]

i know it's not politically correct, but it works EVERY time ( of which there have been less and less.)
When I get a person I verbalize as if I were in a 1/2 way house with diminished mental capacity and start talking past the phone telling my other residents, that the call is for me, that he wants to be my friend, and I ask the caller if he wants to, and start "arguing" and a few times the caller says to a co-worker "you gotta hear this" after I start yelling and. calling for my counselor, they usually say, never mind, always been courteous and my calls are now down to maybe one a month- this is me also registered with the do not call registry.

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

Yesterday I got a call on my land line supposedly from Direct TV....

Well... THERE'S your problem. Land lines are scam magnets.

Had a guy trying to convince me to open my network so he could kill my viruses.
He said my IP address was 127.0.0.1
(Oh, honey.... you're adorable.....)
30 minutes, I confessed to having ChromeOS.
I was called names....
He hurt my feelings... :'(

Aaaaaaaaanyway.
Decrease the cross section of your online data profile.
NEVER use a real name for social media
NEVER use a real picture
NEVER use the same login/password on multiple sites (unless you really don't care)
Avoid password managers (seriously)
And use a proxy if at all possible. Especially on public WiFi.

 

[JEBar]

we use Direct TV, thanks for the head's up

 

[Mel]

NEVER use a real name for social media

Or, how about...NEVER use social media!

 

[CrimsonEclipse]

Or, how about...NEVER use social media!

yeah, it's a cesspool wasteland.
Broke my habit a while back, but I don't expect the general population to do the same, so at least they use an assumed name.

Ever try to leave the Apple or Google ecosystem?

It's a freakin' nightmare.

 

[Marshall]

I like to say that I'm a social large, not medium...

 

[Coss]

So I told him I like the virus and want to keep it. He then says that he will be forced to block my computer. I tell him go ahead, block it. He usually ends up hanging up on me. BTW, I use Malwarebytes for antivirus and have for many years. It seems to block a lot of the pop-ups pretty good.

Malwarebytes is OK especially with the latest update, but I use ESET first, along with Malwarebytes.
I know, MB is free, and ESET cost you money, but with that combo I haven't had any problems at all.
And this is for the last 10 years, got tired of Symantec hogging up most of the resources, and missing a LOT of things.
Dumped Symantec, and will not go back to them (and I do or did, computers for a living)