Other products

Remove Fake pop-up or tech support scam messages that warn the computer is infected

Some fraudulent companies use fake pop-up warnings that claim your computer is infected with a virus. These Pop-ups are made to look like a Norton virus scan alert or other types of legitimate security warning.

To identify and avoid fake tech support scams:

  • Examine the message closely; look for obvious signs of fraud such as poor spelling, unprofessional imagery, and bad grammar.

  • Do an Internet search for the phone number that is listed in the pop up to verify its legitimacy.

  • You will never receive an unsolicited call from Norton Support to fix issues with your computer. You will only receive a call if you have requested for it.

To learn more, read Learn more about technical support scams and steps to avoid them.

If you need help, contact Member Services and Support.

Contact Us

If you want to know whether the email that you have received is from Norton, read Verify that an email you receive from Norton is legitimate.

If you think your computer is infected, perform the following steps.

STEP 1

Run Full System Scan

    Perform a scan with your Norton product to detect and resolve the changes that were made or misleading application installed by the Fake pop-up and tech support scams.

  1. Start Norton.

    If you see the My Norton window, next to Device Security, click Open.

  2. In the main window, double-click Security, and then click Scans.

  3. In the Scans window, select Full System Scan and click Go.

  4. When the scan is finished, click Finish.

STEP 2

Download and run Norton Power Eraser

  1. Download Norton Power Eraser.

    Download Now

  2. Click Save.

  3. Select the location as Desktop, and then click Save.

  4. To run Norton Power Eraser, double click the NPE.exe file.

    If the User Account Control window prompts, click Yes or Continue.

  5. Read the license agreement, and click Accept.

  6. In the Norton Power Eraser window, click the Scan for Risks icon.

  7. By default, Norton Power Eraser performs a Rootkit scan and requires a system restart. When you see a prompt to restart the computer, click Restart. If you do not want to include the Rootkit scan, go to Settings, and uncheck the option Include Rootkit scan (Requires a system restart).

  8. Follow the on-screen instructions to run the scan.

The solution made it easy for me to handle my issue.

Yes No

Help us improve this solution.

Thank you for helping to improve this experience.

What would you like to do now?

Browse for solutions, search the Norton Community, or Contact Us.

DOCID: v122764455
Operating System: Windows
Last modified: 11/20/2020