At one time or another we all need emergency technical support and don’t want to be a nuisance to anyone. More times than not, it’s a simple plaguing issue that we need fixed immediately for no other reason than it seems imminent. Whatever the issue, it has to be fixed now.
My aunt called me on Thursday with an issue I couldn’t address immediately. She must have perceived my lack of sleep and impatience that day and changed her plan. Because the office misplaced the CD that was originally included with the printer, her boss made the decision to pay $200.00 for immediate telephone technical support.
Like a lot of people, they did an internet search for “HP support” and were given several links which all seemed legitimate. The first of those was a website stating they support HP products. Second was a website listing HP and other brands. At first glance it’s easy to justify them as valid support options, a common mistake being made every day by many people.
I decided to take a long day and make it longer, so rather than go directly home and to bed I opted to stop at her work and do a little research. Armed with a prepaid credit card I decided to call one of these companies and see just how they operate. Because of sheer exhaustion and ill planning, I opted to use my personal computer as the guinea pig.
The company I chose required the initial contact be online chat. I created a scenario about my connection speed lagging. Within three minutes of concise chatting, the technician suggested we telephone each other and start a direct connect session which he takes control of my computer.
Apgar, which is also the name of the scoring system used for newborns, started showing me issues with my computer. He told me my computer had too many users and “multiple hundreds” of incorrect services. Days prior to calling Apgar, I had made slight tweaks to my computer specifically to enhance speed. Because I’ve lived alone for nearly two years I also found it strange others had access to my computer.
Sweating nervously, I obliged his request to enter my credit card number, CVV code, and zip code. My logic was the quicker I pay, the quicker he works, and the quicker I get shut eye. Once he had my credit card I sensed this was only the first part of the scam.
Rather than perform any real work on my computer he guided my mouse around the screen checking and unchecking items. After about an hour of watching him zoom around my screen I finally questioned what he was doing. He responded, “sir, you have many, many issues.” No kidding I do, but the computer runs fine.
During his ‘support’ session Apgar suggested better virus software and uninstalled my recently updated AVG Free. According to Apgar, the best solution for my computer was to install their brand of software for $49.00 and setup a recurring maintenance contract at $19.99 per month. Although I knew I had only loaded $210.00 on my prepaid card, I authorized the additional charges. Once declined, he instantaneously disconnected and logged off my computer.
Apgar really didn’t do anything to my computer and basically turned a bunch of things on and off to make it look like he repaired my issues. Next time you need technical support for a specific product you should visit the manufacturer’s website directly. Most of the time online support is truly free. Thursday was a rough day for me and this only made it worse. If I ruined your day on Thursday, just imagine what I would have done to your night after this supposed support scam.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can call him directly at (978) 919-8059) or visit www.LocalComputerWiz.com.