“Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” pretends to be legit alert from Microsoft

“Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” is a fake alert that might pop up on a malicious website. The scam message delivers an Error # 268D3 [1] and urges to call Microsoft via 1-866-216-1642 to fix a “critical error.” However, instead of reaching your phone, you should close browser’s tab and check your computer’s security. It's not a real alert.
“Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” scam uses the name of Microsoft in order to trick inexperienced computer to call scammers via provided number. The pop up also tells that the computer is infected with a virus or spyware. For this reason, user’s Facebook and Microsoft account passwords, banking details, and photos stored on the PC was stolen.
Scammers urge to make a call in 5 minutes. Later, the device is said to be disabled. However, you should not be fooled by this trickery. Crooks just want to scare victims into calling fake technicians and make people follow their orders.
Authors of the “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” virus might ask you to buy useless or expensive security software to remove detected malware. However, they might also convince you into installing remote access tools to clean up the device quicker. Once scammers get access to your PC, they might install malicious programs and actually infect your machine with a recent cyber infection.
Computer users usually encounter “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” tech support scam[2] after infiltration of adware. However, apart from redirecting to this misleading website, this potentially unwanted program might also:
- display shopping offers;
- deliver pop-ups or advertising banners that asks to install freeware;
- provide fake security alerts;
- redirects to other scam, phishing or infected websites;
- track information about users;
- install unknown third-party software or plugins.
Keep in mind that “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” removal does not include calling any technical support specialists. To stop redirects and ads from the browser, you have to either scan the system with security software or uninstall adware-related components manually.
Scanning the system with FortectIntego or another anti-malware is the quickest way to remove “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” virus. However, if you insist on doing it manually, you can find the instructions at the end of this article.

Redirects to technical support scam website often starts after adware hijack
Nevertheless, some potentially dangerous websites initiate redirects to this scam website; most of the time scammers reach victims with the help of adware program. This potentially unwanted program might be presented as a useful add-on and added in the software package. Thus, you have to be careful when installing freeware:
- Instead of Quick/Recommended setup always use Advanced/Custom;
- Read all the information provided in the installation wizard, including EULA and Terms of Use;
- Unmark ALL pre-selected apps not matter if they seem useful.
Stop “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” malware’s activities
Security experts from Estonia[3] note that redirect to a scam website might be a one-time action. However, if this activity continues, it means that your computer is infected with an ad-supported application. So, you have to find and remove “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” adware.
The instructions below will explain how to eliminate PUP correctly. However, if redirects continue or you want to speed up this process, you should opt for the automatic “Microsoft Corporation HAS BLOCKED YOUR PC” removal option.
Uninstall from Windows
Uninstall from Windows 10/8:
- Type Control Panel into the Windows search box and open the result.
- Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.

Uninstall from Windows 7/XP:
- Click on Windows Start > Control Panel (Windows XP users should click on Add/Remove Programs).
- In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.

Remove the unwanted program:
- In the Programs and Features window, look for any recently installed suspicious entries, select them, and click Uninstall.
- If User Account Control appears, click Yes to confirm, then complete the removal.

Delete from macOS
Remove the unwanted application:
- From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
- In the Applications folder, look for any suspicious entries, then drag them to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash).

Delete leftover files and folders:
- Select Go > Go to Folder.
- Enter /Library/Application Support and remove any suspicious folders related to the unwanted program.
- Repeat the same check in the /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders, deleting any suspicious entries.

- Finally, empty the Trash to permanently remove the leftovers.
Reset Internet Explorer
Remove dangerous add-ons:
- Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top-right corner of the browser
- Pick Manage Add-ons.
- You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for suspicious plugins. Click on these entries and select Disable.

Change your homepage if it was altered:
- Open IE and click on the Gear icon.
- Select Internet Options.
- In the General tab, delete the Home page address and replace it by your preferred one (for example, Google.com).
- Click Apply and then select OK.

Delete temporary files:
- Press on the Gear icon and select Internet Options.
- Under Browsing history, click Delete...
- Select relevant fields and press Delete.

Reset Internet Explorer:
- Click on Gear icon > Internet options and select Advanced tab.
- Select Reset.
- In the new window, check Delete personal settings and select Reset.

Remove from Microsoft Edge
Delete unwanted extensions from MS Edge:
- Select Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and pick Extensions.
- From the list, pick the extension and click on the Gear icon.
- Click Remove.

Clear cookies and other browser data:
- Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Settings > Privacy, search, and services..
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Select Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files. (apart from passwords, although you might want to include Media licenses as well, if applicable) and click on Clear.

Restore new tab and homepage settings:
- Click the menu icon and choose Settings.
- Then find On startup section.
- Click Remove next to any suspicious startup page.
Reset MS Edge if the above steps did not work:
- Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
- Click on More details arrow at the bottom of the window.
- Select Details tab.
- Now scroll down and locate every entry with Microsoft Edge name in it. Right-click on each of them and select End Task to stop MS Edge from running.

Instructions for Chromium-based Edge
Delete extensions from MS Edge (Chromium):
- Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
- Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove.

Clear cache and site data:
- Click on Menu and go to Settings.
- Select Privacy, search and services.
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Under Time range, pick All time.
- Select Clear now.

Reset Chromium-based MS Edge:
- Click on Menu and select Settings.
- On the left side, pick Reset settings.
- Select Restore settings to their default values.
- Confirm with Reset.
- This will disable extensions and reset startup pages but will not delete bookmarks, saved passwords, or browsing history.

Remove from Mozilla Firefox (FF)
Remove dangerous extensions:
- Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the Menu (three horizontal lines at the top-right of the window).
- Select Add-ons.
- In here, select the unwanted extension and click Remove.

Reset the homepage:
- Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
- Choose Settings.
- Under Home, set your preferred homepage and new tab settings.
Clear cookies and site data:
- Click Menu and pick Settings.
- Go to Privacy & Security section.
- Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
- Click on Clear Data...
- Select Cookies and Site Data and Temporary cached files and pages, then click Clear.

Reset Mozilla Firefox
If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:
- Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
- Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information.

- Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox...
- Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox.

Remove from Google Chrome
Delete malicious extensions from Google Chrome:
- Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
- In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all suspicious extensions related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove.

Clear cache and web data from Chrome:
- Click on Menu and pick Settings.
- Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
- Select Browsing history, Cookies and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
- Click Clear data.

Change your homepage:
- Click menu and choose Settings.
- Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
- Click on Open a specific or set of pages and click on three dots to find the Remove option.
Reset Google Chrome:
If the previous methods did not help you, reset Google Chrome to eliminate all the unwanted components:
- Click on Menu and select Settings.
- In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
- Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
- Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
- Confirm with Reset settings.

Delete from Safari
Remove dangerous extensions:
- Open Safari, click Safari in the menu at the top-left of the screen, and select Preferences.
- Go to the Extensions tab, look for any suspicious entries, and click Uninstall to remove them.

Clear history and website data:
- Click Safari in the menu and pick Clear History.
- Set Clear to all history and confirm with Clear History.

Reset Safari:
- Click Safari in the menu and select Preferences > Advanced.
- Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
- From the menu bar, click Develop and select Empty Caches.

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