Computer users are being warned to be on their guard against a “cold calling scam” that could leave their bank details available to criminals.

News sources have it that a number of people have been called by scammers pretending to be from the computer software giant Microsoft or an internet service provider, some of whom have had their bank accounts emptied as a result of the con.

The ruse works by making people think that their computer has a virus. The “problem” is then fixed by a series of steps which ends with the scammers being allowed remote access to the computer.

To add insult to injury, people are also asked to provide their credit card details in order to pay a fee for the repair.

Jaclyn Clarabut, assistant editor of Which? Computing, said the magazine had received about 10 calls from around the country but it was aware that trading standards officers were also receiving some.

She thought there were only a handful of cases where people were defrauded.

“We wanted to draw attention to this before the situation gets any worse,” she said.

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