I have been scammed by GoToAssist

Question

I have been scammed by GoToAssist

Anonymous

I purchased brand new PC also bought MS Office at the same time. Once I came home try to installed MS Office (office.com/setup), after I key in and ran into error (key was incorrect) then I got this GoToAssist contacted me, and I asked me to pay $349 to install the Firewall on my machine in order to install MS Office. They said they're going to give me a new key since the one I bought is no longer work, they told me the Hacker took it, since I don't have the "Firewall". I said no, I have installed MS office before and have no issues --They just hangup. This was the most rudest and unprofessional I have to dealt with. MS need to do something about this. I have paid $150 for the office, now is unless, I have to get a refund back. What a waste of time/money.

I end up returned all of the items to the store.

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ScottGem 68,810 Volunteer Moderator

You were smart to refuse their assistance. And you are correct that you were being scammed. But why blame Microsoft? The store should have refunded everything. It would appear the store sold you an unauthorized license key for Office. Go back and get a refund from them.

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3 additional answers

Answer 1

Hi GeraldGarnto,

I'm sorry for that I can't give you a certain answer about if something was bound with GoToAssist because I never use it to do troubleshooting before. Please see How to Completely Uninstall an App on Mac, there are many location could be a shelter for Virus plug-in especially /System/Library/Extensions.

Hope you can find something that trigger the issue, otherwise you should ask for assistance from a real GoToAssist support.

Disclaimer: Microsoft provides no assurances and/or warranties, implied or otherwise, and is not responsible for the information you receive from the third-party linked sites or any support related to technology.

Regards,

Eric

Answer 2

I allowed 'remote' assistance from a vendor IT tech I work for. I was having trouble logging in to their account. Instead of sending me their new portal access address, to make sure I was going through the new portal, he insisted I allow him to install GoToAssist on my desktop PC, so he could "see for himself" what I was experiencing. He zipped all over the screen and installed their portal as a desktop icon, with Edge as the default browser (I still use IE-11), turned on or installed In Private Browsing, and installed Skype.

I've had the mouse and keyboard stall several times, just like the IT assist did while he was 'working' for me.

I have had several WHEA Uncorrectable Errors since.

I've had to update and repair several times.

Device Encryption Support binding is not supported, PCR7 Configuration not possible, Hardware Security fails, Secure boot State unsupported.

Is there something still installed from GoToAssist that is 'attacking' my machine like benevolent malware? (I did 'agree' to their terms of use, without reading a darn thing . . .)

I can't find out anything on the web except some folks experiencing scams from sales people.

I hate thinking I may have to do a clean install. I have so many older programs installed like Word 2003, that currently work, but will need to be replaced after updating a clean install.

Does GoToAssist keep fingers in the background, even after the session is closed?

Answer 3

Hi patrickSingr,

Thanks for sharing your experience in our community that will give a warn to other users.

Microsoft never bind third-part products to Office and the other Microsoft products. The installation requirement is public on official website.

I agree with Scottgem and you have right to get refund from store.

Regards,

Eric

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I have been scammed by GoToAssist

3 additional answers