Some suspected scammers could be choosing targets in southern Colorado. One woman tells 11 News she ended up on their list, talking directly to someone who wanted to hack into her on-line files.
When Patty Crowder's cell phone rang recently something immediately seemed wrong.

"[The caller I-D] only came up as three digits, which was really odd," Patty said.

The call got stranger. Patty said woman speaking broken English tried to convince Patty to allow a company called V-Tech Solutions to access to her computer and scan it for viruses.

"I was concerned,” she said. “I know for a fact once they do have access to your computer they have access to your life."

11 News Call for Action expert Betty Sexton says Patty was right to be concerned. The type of approach is one that's made the rounds for nearly three years.

"This company does not represent Microsoft,” Sexton said. “It is not a valid claim, this is a scam."

It could be costly too, giving the scammers free reign to personal information that's supposed to be protected.

"Number one; don't respond to it,” Sexton said. “If you have any questions, make some calls on your own."

Patty played it safe, asking some pointed questions that the caller couldn't answer. The caller then hurriedly hung up the phone.

"You always think it's going to happen to someone else, but it happened right here," Patty said.

More useful information about avoiding these scammers can be found in the latest blogs section on the KKTV 11 News homepage.