I recently tried downloading a cheat and everything seemed fine at first. However, I ended up getting a Discord call from a guy who had me download a driver and another program, which caused my system to crash with a blue screen. He made me change some BIOS settings, including disabling CSM support and enabling UEFI legacy settings, claiming that I've now got firmware-level hacks on my CPU, GPU, and RAM. He said he could unlock it with a password if I pay him. I've unplugged everything, turned off the power, and shut off my Wi-Fi. I didn't use an admin password and it's my sister's Wi-Fi, so he has my info including my address and phone number. Is it possible he actually hacked my firmware, and can he really gain control if I don't pay him? Here's my setup: Ryzen 7 7700, 32GB RAM, 9070 XT, Gigabyte X870 Eagle Wi-Fi, 2TB SSD (OS) + 1TB SSD.
1 Answer
Sounds like this guy is just trying to scare you! There isn’t a firmware-level virus that he can unlock. Your best bet is to keep the PC offline and reactivate secure boot. That setting usually prevents unauthorized drivers from loading. I recommend changing all your passwords from a different device and doing a clean Windows install. It should keep your personal files but you'll need to reinstall your programs. If you can't log in or if your files are encrypted, then you've got bigger issues to deal with. Good luck!
Yikes, sorry to hear things got so messed up! Sounds like he just messed with your Windows boot. For the Wi-Fi, unless he accessed your router, he shouldn’t be able to do anything else. Just stay offline and breathe. You got this!