Florida Man Almost Falls for Fake Microsoft Scam and Warns Others to Not Fall Victim

A North Fort Myers Florida man almost fell victim to a fake Microsoft scam, and shares his experience with WINK News. Find out the alarming scare tactics that scammers are using to scare innocent victims into handing over their money.

Steve Seifert; credit: WINK News

WINK News reporter Ryan Kruger reported that Florida residents lost about 1.5 billion dollars to online scams in 2025, according to the FBI. Cyber crooks are using fake and malicious websites and pop-ups to fool victims into thinking they have committed a crime before asking for money.

Ryan Kruger reported that 3,000 people fell victim to scams every day in the U.S. in 2025, with Florida having the 3rd highest losses after (#2) Texas and (#1) California.

A Florida Man Receives a Pop-up Warning on his Computer

Local Fort Myers resident Steve Seifert told WINK News that he was online when he suddenly received a pop-up on his computer, with a warning that got his attention.

The fake Microsoft warning read:

"Microsoft has observed an illegal function on your computer. Call Microsoft Help to get it taken care of" with a phone number that would seemingly connect Seifert to Microsoft technical support.

Once on the phone, Seifert said that the scammer at the phone number informed him that "his credit cards had been used to try to buy illegal material online and that he also tried to place bets." 

Seifert was concerned about the allegations, so he was listening carefully to what the person was telling him. He continued to listen to the scammer until the person switched topics and started to ask him about his bank account information. At that point, Seifert realized that he was dealing with a scammer, and at that point, he hung up the phone. 

First, Steve Siefert tried to contact the FBI, but could not reach them.

Steve then calls WINK News to report what had happened so others can be aware of the scare tactics scammers are using. He also shared with WINK News reporter Ryan Kruger that one of his neighbors lost more than $2,000 to the same type of scam.

Seifert says, "I know better, and they almost caught me."

Ryan Kruger reminds the public that if anyone calls you claiming to be from the government or a financial institution, get off the phone, look up the legitimate number for the institution, and call the trusted number to make sure you aren't talking to a scammer.

YouTube Video: "North Fort Myers man nearly fell victim to growing scam flagged by FBI"

Source: WINK News

Comment on YouTube Video

User @ShamegaJ wrote the following comments in response to the WINK News video:

"These are criminals targeting people. Sometimes, they have lists of vulnerable people, scripts of what to say, and surveillance equipment to make this scam seem real. They are gangstalkers who are organized. They use these tactics to get money and status."

Scammer Leaves Her Fake ID at North Carolina Bank After Trying to Steal $4,000 from Bank Account

A woman in North Carolina went into a bank in Roanoke Rapids with a fake ID that had her real photo as the picture. The fraudster got nervous and quickly left while the bank teller was checking on the account she was trying to withdraw funds from.

credit: Roanoke Rapids Police Department

Some scammers never learn. 

NC Police Department is Looking for a Bank Scammer

Roanoke Rapids Police Department is actively looking for the woman seen in the photo above after she left a fake ID at a bank in Roanoke Rapids, NC.

She walked into the bank around noon on Feb. 7 at a location on East 10th Street in Roanoke Rapids.

She attempted to withdraw $4,000 from a bank account that was not hers.

The bank teller became suspicious and had another teller contact the real account owner. The account owner said that "no one should be removing funds from their account."

As the teller was checking on the bank account, the woman quickly left the bank branch, leaving her fake ID behind. Bank employees said that the picture on the Identification card was accurate, while the other information was not. 

If you have information on this woman, please contact Halifax County Crime Stoppers at 252-583-4444.

Hacker Takes Control of a Man's TV & Puts a QR Code on the Screen. The Man Scans it and Loses Thousands of Dollars.

 A Florida policeman who recently had surgeries after being hit takes a financial blow when a hacker puts a QR code on his TV. He scans it and it directs him to call a phone number, connecting him with scammers ready to steal his money.

Rafael Cubela; credit: 7 News

Florida Policeman Hacked After Scanning a QR Code on His TV

7 News reported that a policeman who drives a motorcycle is recovering from a vehicle colliding into him, and something else happened.

As he was recovering, he was watching a movie on Amazon Prime when a QR code came on his TV screen. He scanned the code and it directed him to call a phone number.

After he called the number, they informed him that they were employees of Amazon. The representative could tell him personal information, all found on his smartphone.

Rafael said:

 “He knew my Social Security, the last four numbers, he knew the banks that I used, that were on my phone.”

After the scammer said he fixed the problem, Rafael noticed that his smartphone was displaying strange notifications. 

After all of this, Rafael also noticed that he opened up an app and saw a large amount of money from one of his accounts.

Sure enough, the scammers had stolen $5,000 from Rafael's bank account.

He contacted his bank, and the bank refused to return the money.

Rafael said:

“For them to say that they’re not going to be held responsible for this, to me, it’s sad.”

Now he will take it to small claims court after he recovers from his surgery. 

Always be aware that scanning a QR code can allow hackers to gain access to your phone and personal information.

Scammers Take $13,000 from An Illinois Man in a Bill Paying Scam on Whatsapp

Mohammad Mazher, fell victim to a scam that promised to help him pay his bills amid rising inflation. He lost $13,000 to the scammers who contacted him on WhatsApp and claimed to be from a bill negotiation service.

Mohammad Mazher

One man learned the hard way not to trust random strangers who promise to pay his bills.

He admits: "I just fell for the trap."

WhatsApp Scam Fools Illinois Man out of $13,000

WLS Channel 7 News reported Mohammad Mazher from Elgin, Illinois became the latest victim of a scam where criminals promise that they will help you pay your bills. They convince their victims that you just have to pay 60% and they will pay the other 40%. of your existing bills. 

He said:

"The scheme was they will pay the bills off. I would go check online in my ComEd and utility bills, it says paid off. After three or four days, it would get canceled," -Mohammad Mazher, victim of WhatsApp scam

They fooled Mohammad by speaking to him in Hindi to gain his trust. He sent them money, and it appeared that they were paying his bills, but in reality, it just appeared that payment was posting to his account, but then it would reverse days later. 

The criminals were keeping all of the money that he was sending to them. They continued to scam him out of a total of $13,000 USD.

When Mazher realized that his bills were not being paid, and they were scamming him, he filed a police report with the Elgin Police Department and filed a report with the Federal Trade Commission. His police report can be seen below.

There are companies that specialize in debt consolidation, but what Mazher went through was a scam and not a legitimate company. It was criminals wanting to take advantage of a person by gaining their trust.

Image credit: WLS ABC 7 News

Scammers send Letter to Paul Ridden asking for Bitcoin on behalf of the Queen

The lengths that some people will go to scam others is unfathomable.

A man claiming to be Mr. Edward Young posing as the "Private Secretary to HM the Queen Elizabeth II" sent a letter to Paul Ridden, the Chief Executive Officer at Smarttask. There is incorrect spelling and grammar in the scam letter.

The letter reads:

Dear Mr. Ridden,

For the second time in the last 30 yrs, Her majesty the Queen Elizabeth II appeals to a certain number of people to save Great Britain's economy. As you know, the Brexit will happen quite quickly, and we have not reached a bilateral agreement with the European Union.
To save and sustain the UK's economy after Brexit, we must pay the European Union 19 billions.
We currently have more than 82%  of money available, and we need to rise the rest until Oct 19th 2019.

With indulgence we appeal to you if you can borrow the Royal House with amounts between 450,000 - 2,000,000

We will offer 30% interest for a period of 3 months and posibility to become a Member of the Royal Warrant Holders Assiciation.

By paying this amount to the European Union, we will be able to keep the economy and inflation exactly as it is for a minimum period of 10 years and the future changes will not affect imports from EU countries.

We want this letter to remain anonymous as we do not wish the subject to go viral. This could affect the agreements we have in order to obtain the bilateral agreement.

In order to be able to help us financially, please transfer the money to the Bitcoin address that was attached to your letter. Once we receive the funds, we will send you another letter with the contract.

The Queen's warm good wishes to you all for your continuing success in the future.