Remove Windows Firewall Warning Alert (Tech Support Scam/Adware)

What is Windows Firewall Warning Alert? And how does it work?

Windows Firewall Warning Alert is a new fake alert that belongs to the category of tech support scam. This fake alert appears as a pop-up message on malicious websites designed for phishing purposes. This tech support scam contains a deceiving message that goes like this:
“Windows Firewall Warning Alert
Malicious Spyware/Riskware Detected
Error #0x86672ee7
Please call us immediately at +1 (866) 475-7161
Do not ignore this critical alert.
If you close this page, your computer access will be disabled to prevent further damage to our network.
Your computer has alerted us that it has been infected with a Spyware and risk ware. The following information is being stolen…
Financial Data
Facebook Logins
Credit Card Details
Email Account Logins
Photos stored on this computer
You must contact us immediately so that our expert engineers can walk you through the removal process over the phone to protect your identity. Please call us within the next 5 minutes to prevent your computer from being disabled or from any information loss.
Operating System Windows
Browser Under Attack
IP Address Under Attack
Location Under Attack
Threat Level Very High”
At first, you might be worried when you see this scam message as it uses some sort of error code like what you see on legitimate error messages from Windows. However, unlike those legitimate error messages, the Windows Firewall Warning Alert is anything but legitimate. Despite how believable this alert may be, it isn’t real and is only designed to trick you into calling the given tech support number +1 (866) 475-7161 which it claims to be toll free. This is something you shouldn’t do though because if you do, you might only be charged for unnecessary tech support service. Not to mention the fact that they might also pressure you into providing confidential information such as your credit card details. So as soon as you encounter the Windows Firewall Warning Alert scam, close that tab immediately.
How does Windows Firewall Warning Alert scam roam the web?
Windows Firewall Warning Alert scam roams the web through sponsored contents. In other words, if you clicked on an ad, be it intentionally or accidentally, you can be redirected to the site that hosts this tech support scam. But if you are frequently redirected to this scam more often, that’s a different case – your computer might be infected with some ad-supported program. Adware programs are usually distributed as optional components in a free software download. To avoid getting infected with adware and unwanted programs, you have to use the Custom or Advanced installation setup every time you install a free software package.
To remove the Windows Firewall Warning Alert scam, refer to the following removal guide.
Step 1: Tap F11 to exit if your browser is forced into full screen mode.
Step 2: After that, try to close the browser manually. If you find it hard to do so, close the browser through the Task Manager.
Step 3: Tap the Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys to launch the Task Manager.
Step 4: After opening the Task Manager, go to the Processes tab and look for the affected browser’s process and end it by clicking End Task or End Process.

Step 5: Close the Task Manager and tap the Win + R keys to open Run and then type in appwiz.cpl to open Control Panel to uninstall the adware program behind the fake alert.
Step 6: Look for the adware program or any unfamiliar program under the list of installed programs and once you’ve found it, uninstall it.

Step 7: Close the Control Panel and tap the Win + E keys to open File Explorer.
Step 8: Navigate to the following directories and look for the adware installer like the software bundle it came with as well as other suspicious files and delete them.

%USERPROFILE%\Downloads
%USERPROFILE%\Desktop
%TEMP%

Step 9: Close the File Explorer and empty your Recycle Bin.
Step 10: Reset all your browsers to default.
Google Chrome

Launch Google Chrome, press Alt + F, move to More tools, and click Extensions.
Look for suspicious browser extensions or any unwanted add-on, click the Recycle Bin button, and choose Remove.
Restart Google Chrome, then tap Alt + F, and select Settings.
Navigate to the On Startup section at the bottom.
Select “Open a specific page or set of pages”.
Click the More actions button next to the hijacker and click Remove.

Mozilla Firefox

Open the browser and tap Ctrl + Shift + A to access the Add-ons Manager.
In the Extensions menu Remove the unwanted extension.
Restart the browser and tap keys Alt + T.
Select Options and then move to the General menu.
Overwrite the URL in the Home Page section and then restart the browser.

Internet Explorer

Launch Internet Explorer.
Tap Alt + T and select Internet options.
Click the General tab and then overwrite the URL under the homepage section.
Click OK to save the changes.

To make sure Windows Firewall Warning Alert scam is completely eliminated as well as the adware program behind it, follow the advanced steps below:
Perform a full system scan using SpyRemover Pro. To do so, follow these steps:

Turn on your computer. If it’s already on, you have to reboot
After that, the BIOS screen will be displayed, but if Windows pops up instead, reboot your computer and try again. Once you’re on the BIOS screen, repeat pressing F8, by doing so the Advanced Option shows up.

To navigate the Advanced Option use the arrow keys and select Safe Mode with Networking then hit
Windows will now load the SafeMode with Networking.
Press and hold both R key and Windows key.

If done correctly, the Windows Run Box will show up.
Type in explorer http://www.fixmypcfree.com/install/spyremoverpro

A single space must be in between explorer and http. Click OK.

A dialog box will be displayed by Internet Explorer. Click Run to begin downloading the program. The installation will start automatically once a download is done.