A pop-up says your computer is infected. Here's what to do.
If a full-screen warning is telling you that your computer is infected, that your files are locked, or that you must call a phone number "before it's too late": it is not real. No genuine Microsoft or Apple warning ever asks you to phone anyone or pay anything. We see this every week in London, Ontario, and it is aimed at older people on purpose. In 2024 Canadians reported $638 million in fraud losses, and people over 60 absorbed about 40 percent of it, according to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Do these three things first
- Don't call the number, and don't pay. Not by credit card, gift card, bank transfer or Bitcoin. A real company never demands gift cards.
- Don't let anyone connect to your computer. If someone is already on the phone with you asking you to install "support software" or read out codes, hang up. It feels rude. Do it anyway.
- Close the browser. On Windows, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc, pick your browser, and click End task. On a Mac, press Command + Option + Esc and Force Quit the browser. If nothing works, hold the power button until the machine turns off, then start it again.
When it comes back
If the warning returns when you reopen the browser, don't restore your previous tabs. The pop-up is usually just a web page that reloads itself, not a real infection. Run a scan with Windows Security, which is already on every Windows computer, or the free version of Malwarebytes. Uninstall anything you don't recognise that was installed in the last week.
If you already gave them something
- You paid: call your bank or credit card company right away and ask them to reverse or block the charge. Gift cards: call the card issuer with the card numbers; sometimes the balance can still be frozen.
- You let them connect: assume they saw your saved passwords. Change your email password first, then banking, then everything else. Turn on two-step sign-in.
- You gave your banking login: phone the bank's fraud line today, not tomorrow.
- Report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1‑888‑495‑8501. Only about 5 percent of fraud is ever reported, and reports are what get numbers shut down.
How we help
Our Security clean-up is a fixed price ($119 until December 31, 2026, plus HST). At your kitchen table or remotely while you watch, we remove the pop-ups and any junk software, check what is really installed, lock down your email and banking with two-step sign-in, set up a password manager so you don't need to remember 40 passwords, turn on automatic backups, and leave a one-page safety checklist in plain English. If a pop-up ever comes back, you have a number to call that isn't the one on the screen.