Fake Windows Security Alert and Locked Browser Page through an app

How it looks through an app, the red flags and what to do.

A fake app can be installed from a link, from a file sent on chat or even from a lookalike listing. Once on your phone it can ask for powerful permissions. Fake Windows Security Alert and Locked Browser Page is one of the ways this shows up: A full-screen 'Windows security alert' locks your browser and shows a helpline. The page is fake and the agent aims to take control of your PC.

What fake windows security alert and locked browser page looks like through an app

• An .apk file sent on WhatsApp or by SMS.
• An app outside the official store that asks for many permissions.
• A screen-sharing or remote-control app that a caller asks you to install.

The set-up is an ad or redirect that opens a page in full-screen mode. The page plays an audio warning, shows fake error codes and uses logos that copy a known software company. It may add a fake 'account locked' text and a timer. Because the browser appears frozen, many people cannot see how to close it and panic. Others try to restart, only to find it returns when the browser reopens the last tab.

Red flags to check on the app

• A full-screen page with sirens and a phone number says your computer is blocked.
• The page tries to stop you from closing it.
• The agent says criminals are using your computer right now.
• You are asked to start a remote session or run commands he dictates.
• It asks you to turn off Play Protect.
• The app does not come from the official store listing of the company.

What to do

1. Close the browser by using the task manager or by holding the power button if needed, then reopen without restoring tabs.
2. Do not call the number on the page.
3. Run your computer's built-in security scan and update the system.
4. Do not install it. If it is installed, uninstall it now (Settings, Apps).
5. Open Settings and check Accessibility, Device admin apps and Install unknown apps for anything you do not recognise.
6. Change the passwords of your bank and email from a clean device if the app had access.

Report the fake app to the store it came from and, if money moved, call 1930 and report at cybercrime.gov.in.

If money or a code is already gone

1. Call 1930 and report at cybercrime.gov.in if you paid or shared bank details.
2. Call your bank with the number on your card and ask them to block cards and watch the account.
3. Change email, bank and shopping passwords from a different device.
4. Ask a trusted technician to check the computer for remote tools or unknown programs.

National Cyber Crime Helpline: 1930; report at cybercrime.gov.in.

Safeavio Sentinel is an Android app and does not scan Windows computers. If the scam sends links or texts to your phone, Link check and Scam check can help you spot the warning signs. Phone scan can show any unfamiliar remote-access app installed on your phone, and Safeavio's desktop apps are unsigned pre-releases, so use your computer's own security tools for a PC.

Full guide: Fake Windows Security Alert and Locked Browser Page: how it works, signs and what to do. Other channels: phone call, email, social media.

Questions