Correct. But if downloaded and installed legit software from a legit source, based only on his recommendation, then you are in no more danger than if you did it on your own. There are varying levels of security. I use System Restore to make myself feel better about risk. It might break the functionality of some installed software/malware, but is no guarantee. The only guaranteed way is to wipe the drive and reinstall. That's not warranted here. So, I pick a spot on the spectrum that I think is appropriate, which is on the low end of the "risk scale", but at least it's SOMETHING to make you feel better, hence System Restore.
Truthfully, the whole internet is just chock-full of bad people. The worst are the ones you aren't aware of. Changing passwords regularly is a good idea.
Whose VPS was it? Did it require special software to connect? Did you give up control and/or share you machine when you were connected? Did you share your hard drive? Did you copy critical information (bank account, email passwords, etc...) to the VPS?
Who is the Member? Don't mess around with this. If you have a legit complaint of a scam, post a shitlist thread and maybe save someone else from getting scammed.
There is a difference between getting scammed by a bad actor that is capable of anything, and a "deal gone wrong" with someone who just got the better of you in a deal. If case "A", you need to start a SL thread and you have a legitimate security concern. If case "B", you got burned, lesson learned, don't let that happen again, and your computer is probably safe.
Thank you for your advice. I am not exactly up to speed with how a VPS works. I had to Google it quickly when he sent the details over
I connected using the remote desktop connection which is a default windows program as I understand it.
I changed some settings so I could transfer files from the VPS to my PC directly onto the main C drive. I went to youtube to find how to do that.
Doubt this means anything but the TBS output zip files were all corrupt. Originally, I thought that meant there was an issue with the VPS file transferring, but it turned out to be TBS on the VPS.
I am not sure what you mean by "Whose VPS was it?" The persons name or what? It was a Russian IP and had Xrummer, Scrapebox, etc... pretty much the works installed on it.
He locked me out of the VPS today.
I do have a lot of info on him, which is why I find this entire situation strange. I have his full name, age, the contact info for a client he does a lot of work for, websites, city, emails, he uses the same user name across most accounts, his number and even his girlfriends number. I'd probably be able to cross reference his information and gather even more.
Since we began talking on Wednesday, we have 51 pages (copied and pasted on word) of IM's on Skype. Most of it is him talking about what he wants out of me, telling me about his business plan and bouncing around some ideas. Up until Friday, he went out of his way to accommodation me. Friday, he apologized for not being able to send payment on time. He called me on his own to see if we could figure out a solution. He suggested western union and we planned to exchange info Saturday morning. I never heard from him since.
Nigel, I pm'd you his info. It is pretty obvious what happened but I want to at least give him a business day to get a hold of me before I blast his name on the web.
I definitely got screwed here, though I don't think it was planned. I think he got the money from his client and decided to pocket it and disappear.
