AnyTech 365 Scam? Search for information.

Anonymous
2021-04-23T10:03:34+00:00

Hello

Working in IT myself I got a couple of reports during the last year about a quite interesting "thing" (I think it's some kind of scam scheme) called "AnyTech 365". It's not your "typical" Microsoft phone call scam but something quite a bit more sophisticated.

Interestingly there is/was only very limited information available on line.

The "thing" (suspected scam) goes like this:

Inexperienced users get prompted with misleading information (probably in the form of advertisement they don't recognize a such) which leads them to download some shady "pc repair software" (the name "Restoro" came up a couple of times). Once they run this software they are asked to contact a "support company" called AnyTech365. The people from AnyTech365 then try to sell them an expensive & long-running subscription for support services, usually costing a couple of hundred dollars (one "victim" reported that they even paid several thousand dollars).

Now the thing is: This company AnyTech365 which is located in Spain acts like a reputable business. So it's not some unknown Indian call center that disappears after a few weeks. They are registered and seem to be in for the long run - giving the impression of a "real" IT service provider. Just that their customers don't seem to become customers "voluntarily" but through very misleading sales practices.

At least this is what it looks like after gathering information from a couple of "victims".

Since there wasn't much information about this (suspected) scam scheme available I posted a similar thread like this in the German language Microsoft Community Forums in December. This lead to reports from more people who felt that they were scammed by AnyTech365 and also to a recation from a public relations person from Any Tech 365 who of course was claiming that they are a legitimate company. (However that person also referred to a certification agency called "App Esteem" which seems to be specialised in the "fake" certifictaion of very shady software - so we probably have to assume that a company that gets certidication from "App Esteem" is probably shady too.)

Anyway, since AnyTech365 seems to be active in a lot of languages & countries I thought that I also post this here in the English speaking community.

So we might get a bigger audience and can gather more information about this suspected scam.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Security and privacy

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  1. Anonymous
    2021-08-20T21:49:06+00:00

    (I'm not very convinced you are real by the way)

    I think it's very well possible that Mrs McIntosh is real.

    That suspected scam (well, I guess especially after all the information gathered in the German thread it's probably no longer only "suspected") works so well because a lot of victims never realize that they are being scammed.

    She says she don't remember how she "found" them. For all we know probably like most of the other victims. She fell for some misleading advertisement on the web, probably spreading some fear about a "security issue" or another computer problem they made up.

    And then they continue to tell her some nonsense in order to sell more. She just said that she bought that so called "security router". Ka-ching. More money and another subscription in their pockets. How should an "68-year-old granma" realize that the way that router is advertised is bogus? After all she already trust them.

    After all I've heard so far they're not there to collect their victims money and then go into hiding once their victims realize that something is wrong. Their strategy is based on "creating" victims that never learn what happens to them.

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  2. Anonymous
    2021-08-20T14:00:26+00:00

    Paul, as with all comments on the web (forums, review platforms, Trustpilot etc.), we have to remain sceptical and have our wits about us. This company doesn't seem to have an honest track record and only exists because people need help with their computers and don't feel comfortable doing it themselves. They get roped in by fast talking snake oil salesmen and not given any time to think, a perfect storm.

    SanderWho (the OP of this discussion) has a longer running thread on the German MC site which received an interesting post from an employee of Anytech, read also the reply directly after from a VM: Collection of information on the AnyTech 365 scam (translated). Says it all really.

    I'm really sorry for what happened to your FIL.

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  3. Anonymous
    2021-08-19T02:41:05+00:00

    I have never had one call me and give me a low cost, that alone tells you its not Anytech365.... They are not cheap but good....

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  4. Anonymous
    2021-07-10T15:06:52+00:00

    It certainly is turning out to be very interesting reading SanderWho. I read LukasHoffmann5's posts (translated) some hours ago and was taken aback as to how many companies are involved and where they are domiciled.

    Oh, and this English thread in Google is Hit No. 3, with nowhere near the same amount of traffic as the German one!

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  5. Anonymous
    2021-06-01T17:12:30+00:00

    Yes, I'm not surprised.

    AnyTech365 seems to cooperate with a couple of shady "repair" or "cleaning" tools in order to acquire new "victims".

    The self proclaimed "repair tool" called Restoro was also mentioned in another report. The "victim" downloaded the tool because of misleading advertising and then the tool made up some false positives in order to get the user to pay. Then he was "turned over" to AnyTech365 for what seems to be the next step of the scam: A Subscription to an expensive "support contract".

    AnyTech365 always praises themselves to be "certified" by a company called AppEsteem. But if you look at the list of Apps that AppEsteem certified... well it looks like a comprehensive collection of all fraudulent "system repair", "driver updater" and "system clean" tools there are.

    It doesn't come as a surprise that "iobit" and "Restoro" are certified as well ;-)

    Next to all that other shady stuff.

    Who knows: Maybe most of that stuff even originates from the same source...

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