Indian consumers are increasingly falling prey to tech support scams, even as the intensity of such scams declines overseas. Seven out of every 10 Indian consumers were targeted by such scams, according to a new survey conducted by Microsoft . On 5 July, security firm Avast said it detected and blocked over 200,000 tech support scams in India in the first quarter of 2021 alone. Tech support scams involve unsolicited cold calls or emails, and pop-up ads on websites, which coax users into downloading malware, or being scammed into paying for fraudulent services. “We urgently need to bring tech support fraud into the public awareness; they should be part of educational conversations about the internet in families and among friends.

Source: Mint July 22, 2021 18:56 UTC