(NORFOLK COUNTY, ON) – The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Norfolk County Detachment continues to receive calls from concerned residents regarding their computers that appear to have been locked by government agencies or various police services.
On Wednesday, May 21, 2014 at approximately 9:26 a.m., police received a call from a concerned Norfolk County resident reporting that their computer has been frozen and they had been “locked out†after receiving pop-up messages warning them that they been associated to child pornography web sites. These warnings claimed to be from a government agency or police service and requested the recipient to pay a fine so their computer could be “unlockedâ€Â.
These types of messages are commonly known as scareware, and are designed to create anxiety and complete shock for the computer owner resulting in the owner sending money.
If you receive one of these messages, please be aware that this is a scam. These messages are not being issued by any police service or government agency. If you’ve been “locked out†of your computer, this is an indication that your computer system may have been infected with malware and you will need to take steps to address the problem.