I got an Echo Dot a couple years ago. Today I finally decided to plug it in. Alexa pipes up and tells me to set up through the Alexa app. What app? I seem to have lost instructions, etc. that came with it.
Here’s where I got stupid: I looked online. And stupider: when a chat pop-up opened, I put in my name, phone #, and email. Crap. It says I’ll get a call. I don’t want a call. It comes anyway. Stupidest: I give the so-called tech support person access to my screen. She appears to be setting it up but a pop-up says there’s an issue with the network. She checks my firewall. Says things aren’t encrypted that should be encrypted. At this point I come to my senses and to exit screen-sharing immediately. She appears to do so.
I turned off my computer for a bit. After turning it on, I checked Sharing in System Preferences to ensure nothing was checked. I’ll monitor activity.
Is there anything else I should do?
Disconnect from the internet and look in your installed programs (Control Panel) for remote access software. Sort your programs by install date. Uninstall. If you remember the program name that will help.
There’s no reason that tech support for Alexa or Echo Dot should need access to your PC or be messing with your firewall.
Sound like the classic tech support scam.
Thanks! I’m on a Mac. There’s no control panel. I checked in Applications on the hard drive–none new or modified today. How do I find remote access software?
ETA: The software was GoToAssist.
I did find it and trashed it. Thanks.
I’m not familiar with Macs but GoToAssist is one of the favorites of scammers.
Just consider any pop-up while searching to be phony. Go to Amazon and see if there are instructions there.
Ah-ha. Good to know. And thanks again! I did know better. I don’t know why I had went into Stupid Mode.
It happens to the best of us.