Unwelcome Interruptions: How I Discovered a Surprising Prank on My PC

Have you ever experienced an odd glitch or malfunction with your computer that turned out to be something entirely unexpected? As a seasoned IT professional, I found myself in an embarrassing situation recently when my Windows 10 laptop started spouting unsolicited “Did you know” facts every 30 minutes, accompanied by Cortana’s voice.

Initially, I was baffled. With my technical background, I confidently set out to troubleshoot the peculiar audio interruptions. I disabled Cortana, scoured the settings, and searched online for terms like “Did you know PC speech” and “my PC keeps telling me factoids.” Unfortunately, my efforts led to dead ends, as the search results yielded nothing pertinent to my peculiar problem.

The facts were not just random; they were curious tidbits that ranged from the definition of a hairball—referred to as a “bezoar”—to the historical details of Marie Antoinette’s demise. Every half hour, on the dot, my computer would remind me of something I didn’t ask to know. As I tried to maintain focus on my work, these interruptions became increasingly frustrating.

Despite my frustrations, I confirmed that there were no active extensions or newly installed software that could be causing the issue. Hotkeys were turned off, and Cortana was not supposed to be functioning, so how was this happening?

The Revelation

After a day filled with distractions and a considerable amount of head-scratching, I finally unraveled the mystery. It turned out that a coworker, in a playful spirit, had pulled off an elaborate prank. He had created a .bat file set to execute every 15 minutes, programmed to read random quotes from an XML file and utilize the system’s speech capabilities. To make matters worse, he used a PowerShell script to schedule the task, ensuring that my PC would be sharing its unsolicited trivia at regular intervals without my knowledge.

While the experience was surprising, it was a reminder of the importance of vigilance in the workplace and the occasional lighthearted office humor.

Conclusion

So if you ever find yourself in a similar strange situation, remember to consider the human element before diving deep into technical resolutions. Sometimes, the culprit may not be a glitch at all, but rather a playful coworker with a knack for pranks!