Remove “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus (Tech Support Scam) - Removal Instructions
“Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” scam tests users’ gullibility
“Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” virus functions as another sample of tech support scam[1]. It is another sample of browser-based scam site.
After clicking on a specific web script, a user is directed to a website which supposedly claims that “Microsoft has blocked the computer due to security reasons.”
Firefox users may also see the following message:
Firewall detecting suspicious incoming network connections, we recommend that you click on Back to Safety
The new tab, which might be called Google Security Warning or alternatively – Microsoft Security Alert – suggests dialing 1-800-745-9386 or alternative phone number. Usually, you can exit this page by clicking on Prevent this page from creating additional dialogues button. Recently, there has been a more aggressive case when the website temporarily hijacks your browser, and the only way to exit the page is to shut down the entire browser.
Speaking of “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” scam, it does not possess any exceptional feature. Note that Microsoft nor Google never displays such messages urging you to call any number or contacting the supposed tech support specialists.
Native English speakers may notice that such alerts often contain “clumsy” English style mistakes indicating the deceptive origin of the message. Likewise, do not waste time and exit the page. In case, you cannot do it, let ReimageIntego, Malwarebytes or another malware elimination tool perform “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” removal for you.
Ways to escape tech support scams
This scam spreads like ordinary browser-based tech support scam – via web scripts[2]. You are most likely to encounter “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” hijack if you visit adult-content sites or illegal movie streaming domains.
Likewise, such alert alarming with detected “suspicious activity due to security reasons” may seem viable. Nonetheless, if it contains a phone number, there is no need to doubt it is a scam. Regarding PC-based scams, you might get one of you carelessly install shady unverified programs.
Likewise, such scam functions via malware or adware which sneaks in disguise of an app or browser extensions. Be wary of such technique and attentively install new programs. Now let us review options how to remove “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” scam scripts from the browser. "Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer" scam is just a typical sample of tech support scam.
“Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” scam termination
As discussed above, you may simply cancel the web, if it does not respond it, launch Task Manager. You can do so by clicking ESC+CTRL+SHIFT. After that, find the task indicating your browser, right-click on it and choose “End Task.”
In case you get redirected there occasionally, scan the browser with malware elimination tool. It will help you remove “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” virus scripts. Below instructions will be of use as well. Resetting the browser will contribute to “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” removal as well. Not only English users but users residing in Russia[3] or Norway should be careful of this scam as well.
You may remove virus damage with a help of ReimageIntego. SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner and Malwarebytes are recommended to detect potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.
To remove “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus, follow these steps:
Erase “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” from Windows systems
To remove “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus from Windows 10/8 machines, please follow these steps:
- Enter Control Panel into Windows search box and hit Enter or click on the search result.
- Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.
- From the list, find entries related to “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus (or any other recently installed suspicious program).
- Right-click on the application and select Uninstall.
- If User Account Control shows up, click Yes.
- Wait till uninstallation process is complete and click OK.
If you are Windows 7/XP user, proceed with the following instructions:
- Click on Windows Start > Control Panel located on the right pane (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
- In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.
- Pick the unwanted application by clicking on it once.
- At the top, click Uninstall/Change.
- In the confirmation prompt, pick Yes.
- Click OK once the removal process is finished.
Eliminate “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” from Mac OS X system
If your macOS is displaying some infection symptoms, proceed with the following guide:
Remove “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus from Applications folder:
- From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
- In the Applications folder, look for “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus-related entries.
- Click on the app and drag it to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash)
To fully remove “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus, you need to access Application Support, LaunchAgents, and LaunchDaemons folders and delete relevant files:
- Select Go > Go to Folder.
- Enter /Library/Application Support and click Go or press Enter.
- In the Application Support folder, look for any dubious entries related to “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus and then delete them.
- Now enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus-related entries.
Uninstall “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” from Internet Explorer (IE)
If you still get redirected to the page displaying “Microsoft Has Blocked the Computer” page after resetting the browser, scan the browser with malware elimination software.
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 “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus and other 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 again to complete “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus removal.
Remove “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus 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 “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus-related extension and click on the Gear icon.
- Click on Uninstall at the bottom.
Clear cookies and other browser data:
- Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Privacy & security.
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Select everything (apart from passwords, although you might want to include Media licenses as well, if applicable) and click on Clear.
Reset MS Edge if that 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.
If this solution failed to help you, you need to use an advanced Edge reset method. Note that you need to backup your data before proceeding.
- Find the following folder on your computer: C:\\Users\\%username%\\AppData\\Local\\Packages\\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe.
- Press Ctrl + A on your keyboard to select all folders.
- Right-click on them and pick Delete
- Now right-click on the Start button and pick Windows PowerShell (Admin).
- When the new window opens, copy and paste the following command, and then press Enter:
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\\AppXManifest.xml” -Verbose
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 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.
Get rid of “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” 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 plugins that are related to “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus and click Remove.
Clear cookies and site data:
- Click Menu and pick Options.
- Go to Privacy & Security section.
- Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
- Click on Clear Data…
- Select Cookies and Site Data, as well as Cached Web Content and press Clear.
In case “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus did not get removed after following the instructions above, 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 – this should complete “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus removal.
Delete “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” 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 the suspicious plugins that might be related to “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus 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.
If the above-methods did not help you, reset Google Chrome to eliminate all the “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus-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 to complete “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus removal.
Erase “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” from Safari
Remove unwanted extensions from Safari:
- Click Safari > Preferences…
- In the new window, pick Extensions.
- Select the unwanted extension related to “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” virus and select Uninstall.
Clear cookies and other website data from Safari:
- Click Safari > Clear History…
- From the drop-down menu under Clear, pick all history.
- Confirm with Clear History.
Reset Safari if the above-mentioned steps did not help you:
- Click Safari > Preferences…
- Go to Advanced tab.
- Tick the Show Develop menu in menu bar.
- From the menu bar, click Develop, and then select Empty Caches.
After uninstalling this potentially unwanted program (PUP) and fixing each of your web browsers, we recommend you to scan your PC system with a reputable anti-spyware. This will help you to get rid of “Microsoft Has Blocked The Computer” registry traces and will also identify related parasites or possible malware infections on your computer. For that you can use our top-rated malware remover: ReimageIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes.
Access your website securely from any location
When you work on the domain, site, blog, or different project that requires constant management, content creation, or coding, you may need to connect to the server and content management service more often. The best solution for creating a tighter network could be a dedicated/fixed IP address.
If you make your IP address static and set to your device, you can connect to the CMS from any location and do not create any additional issues for the server or network manager that needs to monitor connections and activities. VPN software providers like Private Internet Access can help you with such settings and offer the option to control the online reputation and manage projects easily from any part of the world.
Recover files after data-affecting malware attacks
While much of the data can be accidentally deleted due to various reasons, malware is one of the main culprits that can cause loss of pictures, documents, videos, and other important files. More serious malware infections lead to significant data loss when your documents, system files, and images get encrypted. In particular, ransomware is is a type of malware that focuses on such functions, so your files become useless without an ability to access them.
Even though there is little to no possibility to recover after file-locking threats, some applications have features for data recovery in the system. In some cases, Data Recovery Pro can also help to recover at least some portion of your data after data-locking virus infection or general cyber infection.
- ^ Karin Price Mueller. Bamboozled: Tech support scam strikes again. TrueJersey. New Jersey Local News, Breaking News, Sports and Weather.
- ^ Jeremy Kirk. Equifax, TransUnion Websites Served Up Adware, Malware. BankInfoSecurity. Bank information security news, training education.
- ^ Eliminate computer threats. Bedynet. Cyberrecurity news in Russian.
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