Battling the Microsoft Defender Subscription Scam: A Personal Account
Recently, I encountered an unsettling issue on my computer – a persistent popup claiming that my Windows Defender antivirus has been upgraded to a Pro plan, costing a staggering $299.00, with a payment scheduled to be deducted from my credit card on August 26, 2024. Despite my awareness that this is likely a scam, the challenge of dealing with it has left me feeling uneasy.
After trying to eradicate the pesky popup by uninstalling all my browsers, I discovered that the situation only worsened. Every time the popup appears, it activates PowerShell, which is concerning, to say the least.
To combat this threat, I initiated multiple scans using Microsoft Defender: a quick scan, a full system scan, and even an offline scan. Despite my efforts, the obnoxious popup continues to reemerge, leaving me bewildered and frustrated.
Upon further investigation, I stumbled upon a file named conhost.exe located in my System32 folder. While research indicated that this file isn’t inherently malicious, I noticed that it always seems to launch alongside PowerShell whenever the popup appears. This discovery raised further questions about the integrity of my system.
I’m reaching out to gather insights or any suggestions on how to effectively rid my computer of this unwanted intrusion. If anyone has experienced a similar situation or has advice on removing such persistent threats, I would greatly appreciate your input. How can I ensure my system remains secure and free from these deceptive scams?
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