00501

Below is a copy n paste from another forum explaining the scam:-

I get these phone calls about one a week. Last time, I was ready for them: I had a machine set up with a clean XP installation, so I played dumb to see what they would do.

They pose as "Windows Support Centre", or suchlike, and say that they've been receiving reports from your computer that there's a problem. You'll probably be asked how old the machine is - however old it is, seemingly, you'll be told that the warranty on your Windows software has expired, or that you should have taken one out when you bought it. Then, you'll be talked though opening something called the Event Viewer, and shown a screen that contains a number of warnings and errors. They will tell you that this is serious, even to the extent that it's causing problems that might force your ISP to cut your connection and/or inform the police.

Let's stop here and make two points:

1. There may well be something called a "Windows warranty". However, I have been a Microsoft Partner for nearly a decade, and I've never heard of such a thing. I think we can assume that if such a thing existed, Microsoft would be sending me lots of information on how I can make money selling it. They haven't, because there isn't.

2. I've never seen an Event Viewer that didn't have warnings and errors, and I've been a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer since 1999. Its function is to keep a record of everything that happens to the operating system so that people like me can find out what's happening if something has gone wrong. Most of the time, though, there's nothing to be alarmed about - in my case, most of the warnings were due to a printer not being found on the network because I'd switched it off.

OK, so the next stage is that you get passed to the "Technical Department". This is where it got interesting: I was told that a six digit support number was being generated so that my problem could be resolved, and I was directed to a website called logmein123, where I could enter this number. Now, this is a common tool used by people like me to fix machines over the network - clients call me with a problem, I can connect to the machine and show them what to do without having to leave my office. In this case, they were going to "fix" my machine. So I let them in. At this point, we will pause for a warning:

WARNING: DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME ON YOUR MACHINE. I WAS GIVING THIS GUY COMPLETE ACCESS TO MY COMPUTER. HE COULD DO ANYTHING HE LIKED, TRANSFER FILES TO INSPECT AT LEISURE, ETC. I WAS USING A MACHINE WITH NOTHING ON IT BUT THE OPERATING SYSTEM. REPEAT: DO NOT LET ANYONE YOU DO NOT KNOW AND TRUST ONTO YOUR SYSTEM IN THIS WAY.

The first thing was that as soon as he connected, I could see the IP address he was connecting from, and I was able to trace this back to a company name, and trace the company back to its offices in Mumbai. While I was doing this (on another machine), I was watching a rather nasty piece of software being uploaded to my machine and installed. A bit of fiddling around, and I was asked to try running a few programs. Lo and behold, they all crashed with frightening looking error messages - remember, this was a machine that was working perfectly a few minutes before. This was explained as a consequence of the problems that I was having before, and that the diagnostic program they were running was now blocking programs that could get me into trouble.

This was the point at which I was asked for money - they started at £100 to fix the problem I already had, with an additional £80 for a simple one year warranty to protect me in the future, or if I preferred, I could give them £299 for an all-in package including fix, anti-virus software and a five year warranty. Visa and Mastercard accepted. If I didn't want to go ahead, then I wouldn't be able to do anything with it until it was fixed.

At this point I let him know what I was doing, complete with telling him the name and address of the company he was working for. I expected him to hang up on me, but he decided to argue with me, at one point telling me that I wasn't an MCSE and I didn't know what I was talking about. In the end, I just told him that if he had been in this country, he could expect to be arrested, and hung up on him.

So, in summary, I wasted my time in this way so you don't have to. If these pirates call you, don't say a word. Just put the phone down.

They keep ringing but I do not answer (good thing caller I D)

Have received 3 calls from this no. today. First two silent, third one foreign sounding girl said " I am calling you from Windows about your conputer" then the line went dead.

http://www.troyhunt.com/2012/02/scamming-scammers-catching-virus-call.html

These t***ers phoned at 1.56 in the morning last month............can you believe it........reported it to the police and to the anti-fraud people as I had experience of them a while ago under a different number, please beware of WINDOWS SERVICE CENTRE!! Grrrrrrrhhhhhhh!!!

Really p****d off with this number 00501 Iv'e had 6 or 7 calls now I just see the number and ignore it. What bugs me are all the elderly and vulnerable people they may be calling. If I still had my parents and they had disturbed them I would be furious. There should be something that could be done.

Had this phone number call me this evening (5.45pm). Indian guy asked if I was the home owner and wanted to discuss whether my property was insulated. I asked where they had got my details from as I was registered with the TPS. He promptly then asked me how much the TPS fine was for them 'cold calling' me, and when I said I didn't know he got annoyed and said "you aren't registered with them if you don't know what the fine is, go-away!" and then he hung up on me. Charming...

I work for a solicitors, and received a call from this number, she wanted to know who dealt with our sales, I told her this was a Solicitors, and she hung up.

I too have received calls from this number at various times day and night surely there must be something one can do about it?

2.00pm had a call from 00501, fortunately we leave our answerphone on and they hung up as soon as the message started.     We also get calls from eight or nine zeros!

got a call from this number but on returning call it does not exist

GOT A CALL , SAID HE WAS NOT TRYING TO SELL ME SOMETHING , JUST WANTED MY OPINION
I NEARLY GAVE HIM IT , BUT I DO NOT LIKE TO BE RUDE ON PHONE ,.

Foreign accent but I think not Indian.
Conversation went something like this:
'Hello, I am Jacob from PPI Claims. We are ready to refund the money from your loan'.
'Which loan is that?'
'You haven't had any loans?'
'If you're ready to refund money to me then you must be able to tell against which loan.'
'Ok. Thank you for your time'. Caller hung up.

silence, then click, then dead- however- the phoneowner website was very interesting- people have recieved calls from this number for over two years, variously claiming to be the ministry of justice, microsoft, ppi misselling, who knows what else. so its just a bunch of criminal chancers. suggest an airhorn or rape alarm just in case you get a live one.

Not the first time, when is this pratt going to be shut down and fined?

Call from 00501 went to answer phone but left no message

i have had two calls from this no,both times saying something wrong with my computer and they can mend it remotely, its a scam to get your credit card details, they say that they are microsoft  tecs and want £15 to mend it .then get more money from you, the last call was today 14/1/13 have told police

This company keep phoning me to do a life style survey.

Had yet more calls from this number supposedly from Consumer Direct to do a lifestyle survey, worryingly they know my full name and address! One of the first questions asked was 'are you happily married or single', when I pointed out that I did not fit into either category he got shirty and said I had to answer one or the other, I refused, he hung up!

Call received at 9:38am today (Friday 18th Januay 2013).  Male called "Austin" asked to speak to my husband, when I handed over the phone to husband the guy then hung up.

called by 00501 today (18th Jan 2013 ) -- female,Asian voice claiming to have had reports of problems with my computer  -- when I asked what her company's name was she replied 'Windows operating system'  --  I said 'nothing wrong with my computer' and hung up