Just downloaded Firefox Browser and received an immediate security alert message and to contact Microsoft Windows referencing a security code - is this bogus?
Downloaded Mozilla Firefox as my Browser on my new PC. A immediate message came up asking for my email address and password saying that the message is a security alert providing a security code to reference when contacting Microsoft Windows at a certain phone number. I entered my info then realized that this may be a bogus message - phishing? Any suggestions as to what I should do next? I have tried to locate a tech support for Mozilla by am having difficulty - a lot of different numbers published on the web none of which I trust.
Alla svar (2)
Don't call any of those people -- there is no official phone support for Firefox.
Hopefully whatever information you gave away doesn't cause any problems for you but if you need to change any passwords to protect your accounts, do that first.
Do you recall what page you visited just before getting the scam page?
Some cleanup probably is a good idea:
(1) Open the Windows Control Panel, Uninstall a Program.
After the list loads, click the "Installed on" column heading to group the infections, I mean, additions, by date. This can help in smoking out undisclosed bundle items that snuck in with some software you agreed to install. Be suspicious of everything you do not recognize/remember, as malware often uses important or innocent sounding names to discourage you from removing it.
Take out as much trash as possible here. If you're not sure, feel free to post program names or a screenshot of the list.
(2) Open Firefox's Add-ons page using either:
- Ctrl+Shift+a (Mac: Command+Shift+a)
- "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons
- in the Windows "Run" dialog, type or paste
firefox.exe "about:addons"
In the left column, click Extensions. Then, if in doubt, disable (or Remove, if possible) unrecognized and unwanted extensions. All extensions are optional; the troublemaker might not be obvious from its name.
(3) You can search for remaining issues with the scanning/cleaning tools listed in this support article: Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware. These on-demand scanners are free and take considerable time to run. If they finish quickly and especially if they require payment, you may have a serious infection. I suggest the specialized forums listed in the article in that case.
(4) Consider installing an extension to block ads that may spread scams this time of year. A popular one is: https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/ublock-origin/. As with any ad blocker, there may be pages where too much is blocked and in that case, use the extension's toolbar button to allow more stuff to come through.
Hopefully that will flush anything on your system and in your Firefox that could be a problem.
You may have ad/mal-ware. Further information can be found in this article; https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/troubleshoot-firefox-issues-caused-malware?cache=no
Run most or all of the listed malware scanners. Each works differently. If one program misses something, another may pick it up.
. Whenever you get a message / popup like that;
DO NOT USE ANY OF THE PROVIDED LINKS OR ANY PHONE NUMBERS ! !
Such messages are only Spam that could lead you to Fake Support. Not only can they damage or hack your system, they charge you to do so.
You can report such a site at; Google Report Phishing Page {web link} which is the same when done while on site by going to Help > Report Web Forgery
Help us safeguard Mozilla’s trademarks by reporting misuse {web link}