The South Lake Tahoe Police Department has recently received calls from residents receiving calls from people pretending to be from Microsoft. The scammers are attempting to have victims send them money.

One recent case targeted a senior South Lake Tahoe couple. The scammers called from an unknown number and claimed to be from Microsoft. The scammer told the victim that the couple had overpaid Microsoft in the past and Microsoft wanted to refund them the money. The scammer had the victim turn on their computer and had the victim give the scammer remote access. As a result, the scammer was able to access the victim’s bank account and deposited a sum of money well in excess of the alleged refund. The scammer then asked the victim to send them the excess amount. The victim did not send the money and was able to work with their bank and stopped all access by the scammer.

Officers urge people to not give access their computers or to give out any personal information to anyone they don’t know.