{"id":395,"date":"2026-03-12T08:54:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T19:54:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/?p=395"},"modified":"2026-03-23T08:54:40","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T19:54:40","slug":"have-you-received-a-virus-alert-scareware-popup-on-your-device","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/2026\/03\/12\/have-you-received-a-virus-alert-scareware-popup-on-your-device\/","title":{"rendered":"Have you received a Virus Alert &#8211; Scareware Popup &#8211; on your device?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Known as Scareware, often caused by dodgy online ads, many from Face book, these \u201cVirus Alert\u201d popups are effective because they prey on fear and confusion. However, they\u2019re often fake!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>How to tell a Fake Alert from a Real One<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many fake virus alerts share the same tell\u2011tale signs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>They appear inside your web browser, not as a normal Windows notification.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They often claim your computer is infected, your files are at risk, or your banking details have been stolen.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They use dramatic language, like \u201cYOUR COMPUTER IS INFECTED!\u201d or \u201cACT NOW!\u201d. \u00a0Real security alerts are calm and factual.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They can include countdown timers, loud alarms, or flashing screens.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They ask you to click a button or link, call a fake \u201csupport line\u201d, or pay for bogus software.\u00a0 Microsoft and other legitimate companies never do this.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They often contain spelling mistakes or slightly \u201coff\u201d logos and colours.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>A simple test you can do is open Windows Security on your device: go to:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Start Menu \u2192 Windows Security. If there\u2019s no warning there, the pop\u2011up is possibly fake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What to do if you have a Scareware Popup?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The safest response is often the simplest:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Close your browser completely. If it won\u2019t close, use Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager and end the browser.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do not click anything inside the pop\u2011up, not even the \u201cX\u201d.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Do not call any phone number shown \u2014 these go straight to scammers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Run a real antivirus scan afterwards for peace of mind.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If the pop\u2011ups keep returning, you may have inadvertently allowed a website to send notifications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Being aware and recognising the signs, can help prevent you being tricked by a scammer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you would like help and\/or advice on any aspect of staying safe online, please don\u2019t hesitate to <a href=\"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/contact-us\/\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"62\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Get in Touch with Us<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Known as Scareware, often caused by dodgy online ads, many from Face book, these \u201cVirus Alert\u201d popups are effective because they prey on fear and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[24,18,36,37],"tags":[22,17,38],"class_list":["post-395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cyber-scams","category-cybersecurity-awareness","category-scam-aware","category-scam-awareness","tag-cyberscams","tag-cybersecurityawareness","tag-scamaware"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=395"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":396,"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/395\/revisions\/396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/securesphere.co.nz\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}