If you are often on the Internet, you would have seen your fair share of scams and viruses. Congratulations, you won is one of these and it has been around for quite a few years. Mostly, this virus affects Android phones but it also appears on Windows, iOS phones, and Mac computers. This message is normally used by hackers or swindlers because they know that people will click on links in the hope of winning something.
What are Congratulations, you Won virus?
Congratulations, You Won is a message that appears with the exact same words. You will see a message that you have won a phone, lottery ticket, or gift card. To claim your reward, you have to fill in a questionnaire. This information is further used by wrongdoers for crimes or to steal your identity. You are asked to fill in your name, email address, and home address to get your reward. However, in the end, there is no reward. It is just some hackers trying to get your information for identity theft or other crimes.
Congratulations, You Won might show itself as one of the following messages:
- Samsun User,
- Google User, You are today’s winner!
- You have been selected.
The reason why most people fall for this message is that it looks very believable. The theme is quite similar to that used by Microsoft so anyone might think that this message is from Microsoft Corporation. Scammers do their best to con people into believing that it is a real message. Depending on your geographical location, this message can differ.
People fall for this scam because the message also comes with a time limit. These scammers set a time limit and you are told that if you do not fill the questionnaire in this given time frame, they will give the gift to someone else. This is why most people rush to fill out the form. Sometimes, you might even see fake comments at the bottom claiming that they did win the iPhone or other prizes that are being promised. All of these things are there to make the message look more convincing.
What Happens if you Fall for Congratulations, you won?
If you fall for this virus, you are at risk. Different scammers have their own reasons for sending this virus your way. Some of them might use this information to steal your identity. In some cases, the ‘winners’ are asked to enter their bank account details too. Hackers could use this information to log in to your bank account.
They might take information such as your IP address and browser history. Moreover, this information can be shared with third-party and you might be directed to malicious or unwanted websites. Basically, the whole purpose is to make you do things that you would not normally do, such as installing malware and unwanted programs or seeing intrusive ads.
How to Get Rid of Congratulations You Won Virus on Android?
If you have this virus on your Android phone, you can get rid of it by resetting your phone. To do this, follow the steps given below.
- Download anti-malware software for your device.
- Reboot your device.
- Start it in Safe Mode.
- Then, go to Settings.
- Select Apps or Apps Manager.
- If you see any suspicious apps that you did not download, uninstall them.
- Check if the problem is still there. If it is, then go to Privacy.
- Tap on Factory Reset.
- Let your device reset. This will remove the virus.
Before you reset, make sure that you have created a backup of all your data that is on the phone.
Get Rid of Virus from Mozilla Firefox
If you use Firefox on your phone and you see the virus there, you can remove the virus by following these simple steps.
- Open Mozilla Firefox and then go to the Menu in the right corner.
- Tap Add-Ons and then go to Extensions.
- In the Extensions window, you will see all the plugins. Look for ‘Congratulations, you have Won’ in this list.
- Click on ‘Remove’ in front of the plugin.
- If there are any other suspicious plugins that you do not recognize, remove them too.
- Then, open the Menu again and tap the question mark.
- Select Troubleshooting Information.
- When you see the option to ‘Reset Firefox to its default state’, tap on ‘Reset Firefox’.
- Follow the steps to reset the browser.
Get Rid of Virus from Google Chrome
To get rid of this virus from Google Chrome, follow the same steps. Go to Settings and then to Tools. From tools, go to Extensions.
- Look for the ‘Congratulations, you have won’ scam.
- Tap the dustbin icon to delete this plugin. If you see any other questionable plugins, delete them too.
- Then, tap the Menu again and go to Settings.
- Select Search and then, Manage Search Engines.
- Go to Search Engines and remove suspicious sites. Your domain name should only be Google.
- To remove any site, tap the cross sign in front of the name.
- Lastly, you can go ahead and reset Google Chrome. To do this, go to Menu and then to Settings. As you scroll down, you will see the option to Reset Browser Settings.
- When the confirmation message pops up, select Reset to reset the browser. All your settings will be reset to default and the browser history will be removed.
Conclusion
It is important to stay safe on the Internet. Otherwise, you can end up being in a lot of trouble. If you see such Congratulations, you won a virus on your phone, do not click on it. The scammers try to get your personal information by tricking you into believing that you have won something very expensive. Be smart about your actions on the Internet. If this virus is bothering you a lot, you can use one of the methods mentioned above to remove it from your phone. We hope that our guide will help you stay safe from intrusions of scammers and hackers.
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