The message is usually short and slightly rude: your Geek Squad plan renews for hundreds of dollars unless you call within 24 hours. Sometimes it is an email with a “dispute” button; sometimes a cold call that already knows your name. Best Buy’s Geek Squad brand is real. The person on the other end of that number often is not. In 2023 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported that Best Buy / Geek Squad was among the companies consumers most often said scammers impersonated — tens of thousands of reports in a single year.
Legitimate Geek Squad support does not cold-call you into downloading remote-control software. Consumer agencies and Best Buy’s own public guidance are clear: do not use the phone number in an unexpected renewal text. Check your card statement yourself. If there is no charge, delete the message. If there is a charge you do not recognise, contact Best Buy through the app or website you already trust — not through the lure.
What the fake desk wants is the screen. After you call, they walk you through AnyDesk, TeamViewer or a similar tool “so we can process the refund.” Once they can move the mouse, they open a page that looks like banking or billing, type large numbers, and claim you were overpaid. The next ask is gift cards, a wire, crypto, or cash “returned” to a courier. That is the theft. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has described the same remote-access refund pattern against households that thought they were speaking to a familiar tech brand.
A quick check beats a long recovery. Hang up. Never install remote-access software for someone who contacted you first. Never read out one-time codes, card numbers or gift-card PINs. If you already shared a session, disconnect it, take the machine offline, run a scan from a clean device, and tell your bank the same day. Keep the message, the number and any screenshots.
For the wider refund-to-cash pipeline — remote access, then notes in the post or a Bitcoin ATM — see Fake Amazon refunds, remote access, then cash or a Bitcoin ATM. Start at Get help if money moved. Anyone offering to “recover” the loss for an upfront fee is usually a second scam — Fake recovery.
This article is for general information only. It is not legal or financial advice. Details change. If you have lost money, contact your bank or card issuer and use the routes on the help pages.