Another round of computer scams is arriving in some people’s inboxes. It claims the Norton PC protection support program you purchased a year ago expired yesterday but has been automatically renewed.
The email states, “SINCE you have chosen the auto-renewal option we have billed your saved A/C detail for the annual amount of your plan upon the expiration of your CONTRACT.”
The message notes that the customer’s alleged account, with an invoice number and date of purchase given, has been charged $399.98.
It also advises, “If you wish to cancel our services, please contact us within 24 HOURS after receiving this email confirmation.”
A toll-free phone number is given to contact the support team. And, “if this order is not placed by you or if you think someone is gaining ACCESS to your Norton account to make a PURCHASE then please feel free to reach us to cancel anytime and get a refund.”
PCRISK magazine notes, “Norton subscription has expired today (yesterday), is a fraudulent pop-up alert, claiming (that in this case Norton antivirus), suite subscription has expired and requires renewal,” or has already been charged to your account via auto-renewal.
“Such scam messages,” says the magazine, “are displayed by various deceptive websites. These sites are rarely visited willingly. Most visitors access it through unauthorized redirects.”
Consumers are encouraged to never open or respond to suspicious emails or click on unknown links.