Resolved

First, I was told that it was probably a bad chip in the Huawei B310s-518 router that was causing the failure to connect to the internet, so I got a new chip.  Nothing changed.  Then I was told that it had to be the router, because the internet provider said that there was nothing wrong with the service on their end.  So I bought a new router, the Huawei WS7100 which is supposed to be the new and best router.  It isn't connecting to the internet. https://consumer.huawei.com/en/routers/ax3-pro/  Is this the appropriate router to connect to the internet?  The info has so much jargon that I can't make heads or tails of the info, but I definitely can't connect to the internet.

I have no support here, and has a call center in Mexico, and I think if that if I shout I will be able to hear them better than over the cell phone.  The internet provider is just as bad, I called them about five times today, and I never got to talk to anyone.  I just gave them all sorts of info so that they can report that they spoke to me.  I have tried reading rather than asking for help, but I am so out of my depth, that is isn't funny.  Did I buy the right router? if so, why doesn't it work?  I understand that we have 5g connection, because the security cameras run on 5G and they are working just fine.


I assume you're getting the steady red on the indicator light?


Is it possible that the cable has been somehow compromised? Does it run all the way from a pole, or does it connect to a box on the house, with another cable coming to your modem? If it's running from a box, maybe you can replace that section of cable.


No, my internet connection does not come from a cable, because I am in the countryside, it only comes from the router.  I assumed that the router went bad, and I bought another router, and I am thinking that perhaps I bought the wrong router.or maybe the problem is not the router at all.  I have called the internet provider tons of times, and they take my info and hang up.  There is no one to ask.  Huawei has multiple stores in Santiago, but that is an hour away plus, and I might have Covid, so I am in quarantine. I bought the router on the internet, it was cheaper than anyplace else, but they have no support.  No number to call, no place to send them a note.  The ad said that it was faster, blah, blah, blah, so I hoped that it would solve my problem, but the computer says that it is not reading the signal.  Maybe what I bought only strengthens the signal within the house, but it assumes that the signal is coming from the cable.  I see no place where to insert the chip from the internet provider on the router: that is probably the problem.


How is the signal getting to your router if not through a cable?  Something has to be transmitting to it?  Are your neighbors having a similar problem or is it just you?  Did the supposed router come with a manual that describes what it does?  Does that manual include a troubleshooting section?  I assume you are getting on line somehow to make this post.  Have you tried an internet search for information on the equipment you purchased? That could verify what you have and help identify known problems.


Who is your provider?

Does the router connect to 5G?


It sounds like you have internet service "over the air" through a cellular provider.  You need a modem/router that supports LTE/5G "cellular". You will have to move the SIM card from the old device to the new device. Don't get this confused with 5GHz (or 5g) WIFI. This is totally different, and is used by your security cameras.   You have to make sure the new device is compatible with your cellular provider. In my opinion, if you were happy with your old modem in terms of service, it would be easier to just purchase the same mode.


Movistar is my provider, and the modem is supposed to connect to 5G.  I don't see a slot for the chip from the internet provider.  What did I buy?  https://consumer.huawei.com/en/routers/ax3-pro/

I am going to have to buy the same old router, if I can find it on sale without buying a plan for multiple years.  But I have to get out of quarantine first.

I'll let you know what happens.

Thank you my angels.


Yeah it looks like the new router you bought is not for 5G.

There are some 5G routers available on Amazon - how does Amazon work for you? Is that an option?

In the meantime, can you set up your phone as a mobile hot spot?


I bought a signal booster.  

Why is it that I have more questions than solutions?


A wi-fi signal booster? Or a 5G signal booster?

Either way, I don't think that's a solution.

Have you tried doing a factory reset on your original router?


There are two types of signal boosters... WIFI and Cellular (LTE).   I would need to know what issue you are trying to fix before suggesting a signal booster.  WIFI booster would be needed in a situation where you are getting good internet access in some parts of the house and poor access in other part of the house far away from the router.  Cellular booster increases the cellphone signal, so if you are getting poor cell phone reception at the location of the router, this may help.  Or if you have the option, sometimes just moving the router around helps.  For finding a good location of a cellular router, a simple test is to walk around with a cellphone and look at the number of LTE "bars" on your phone. Then just place the router where you have the most bars, if possible.


Thank you folks.  I gave up on my modem/router and bought another one on Amazon, one with a slot for a chip.  It was pure hell configuring it, because the provider wasn't much of a help, but finally I got someone that fixed it.  I was 28 days without cell phone or internet access.  We had a big storm, and apparently an antenna fell, but they never said anything about it to their local office or their customers.  I was left to troubleshoot on my own.  I do get a signal now, and I bought a new phone that I didn't need, thinking that mine was broken, so I am OK though the extender that I didn't really need doesn't work.  But today is something else.

My computer has had problems, it is a very good computer, but it is six years old, and the ports are not recognizing any devices.  So I googled, and the search led me to Advanced System Repair Pro which cost $17+ to do maintenance and diagnostics on the computer, they claim to be a Microsoft Partner.  Sounded good, so I signed up.  I get a call that no one picked up on the other end of the line, then a message to call 917-341-2602.  The guy wants to know why I am calling, and I tell him that I signed up for the service, and I received a message to call the number.  So he says:  do you want me to help you install it?  sounded like heaven.  Yes, please do.  

So he is helping me, and he asks what is wrong with the computer, and I tell him about the problem with the ports not recognizing anything that I attach to them. He asks me if I want him to do a separate check on the computer, I ask if it comes with the service, and he says no, that it is something separate and at no cost.  Yeah, I know what you are thinking.  He tells me that everything is being recorded for compliance, and he begins his program which seemed to copy some files.  Yeah.  The software is running in the background and discovers a ransome program on my computer.  He says that he is surprised that I can use my computer, but that it is serious, and he will transfer the call so that they can take it out.

Meantime the bank calls me to ask if I made a transfer for $64.15 while he is bitching that I am making his life difficult because I am using the computer when he told me not to touch it.  There is a charge for $64.15 on the bank instead of the $17+.  I ask Allan, and he tells me that they are three payments of $17 all charged at the same time.  That sure is unusual, but I am still not suspitious.  I tell him that we suspect that my neighbor is a hacker, and that she may have placed the file on my computer.  He is nervous.

So after he transfers the call, I am speaking to Susan who takes about 50 miniutes of my time explaining about the great programs that she has for me to do maintenance on my computer.  This sounds good to me since there is no one in Chile to help me out.  I tried.  I tell her about my neighbor the suspected hacker who makes unbelievable amounts of money, and I learn from the banker on the line that the programs I have paid $64 for are simply diagnostic programs, and repairs are additional.  All of the sudden I realize that taking the ransome file off of my computer is going to cost me $675. My naivite ends there.  I didn't even know I had a ransome file on my computer, maybe they put it there.

I tell them I don't want their service.  I hang up, and delete all the programs from my computer.  They sent me a form to file to get a refund for my $64.15, and I get a message from Norton that blocks my access to that page:  DANGEROUS PAGE BLOCKED in big, red letters.  

I then begin changing all my passwords, but if they made a copy of some of my computer, can they see the new passwords?  I am freaking out.  I can't erase my entire computer.  What do you think?  have you heard of anything like this before?


Sounds like a common scam here.  Someone phones claiming to be from a company like Microsoft, tells you malware has been detected on your computer and offers to remove it.  They then ask your permission to access the computer remotely during which time they copy financial and other sensitive files from your computer.  Depending on how your computer is set up, you may need to delete the malware from more than one place on your computer since some computer systems automatically create backup files to help with data recovery.  Run a good malware program yourself to clean the computer.  In addition to changing all your passwords, you should freeze your credit and get new numbers for your charge cards ASAP.  If you had medical records on your computer and you have medical insurance, you should notify your insurance company as well.  Other wise, you may find claims being filed with them in your name.  Identity theft is another real possibility.


Hold on a minute.

While Advanced System Repair is more of a scam than not, they are actually a "legitimate" business. They are not in the business of identity theft - they are more in the business of selling you software and services that are more than likely to be useless.

Please google them to find out more before you start panicking about identity theft.

As regards to the refund web page - I wouldn't be surprised if the page was set up deliberately to trigger a Norton warning, simply to dissuade you from going there. Having said that I'd call the credit card company and explain to them that you're getting a warning trying to sign up for the refund and see if the cc company can cancel the charge for you.

You can also try calling 917-341-2602 again to ask for the refund.

Sounds like you have Norton anti-virus. Run a virus scan to see if it finds anything. Probably will be useful to install MalWareBytes (it's free) also, and let it do a scan. If something was installed while you were on the phone, try to uninstall it using Control Panel. When in Control Panel, see if anything was installed on the day you were on the phone and if the software is unfamiliar, uninstall that too.

If you can't do it through Control Panel, here are other instructions.

Having read your description of the phone call, and having looked into Advanced System Repair a bit, I don't think you have to worry about an identity theft situation, but I would welcome others to weigh in.

ASR probably is a  Microsoft Partner, so they weren't lying to you. It's just that being a partner is a pretty low bar and does not mean that Microsoft verifies or endorses a company's software or services.



Although it's a couple of years old, I found this article a good explanation of Advanced System Repair. Also contains uninstall instructions.

https://geeksadvice.com/remove-advanced-system-repair-pro/


You folks are priceless.  I did everything you told me to do.  I checked control panel to make sure that I got out all the programs out of my computer, and I ran Norton to make sure everything is clean. Now I will deal with the refund form which I was afraid of using yesterday.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.

If you think of a service that can help me with computer problems and maintenance, I would appreciate the referral.  


drummerboy said:

A wi-fi signal booster? Or a 5G signal booster?

Either way, I don't think that's a solution.

Have you tried doing a factory reset on your original router?

Correct, I had to return it.  


joan_crystal said:

Sounds like a common scam here.  Someone phones claiming to be from a company like Microsoft, tells you malware has been detected on your computer and offers to remove it.  They then ask your permission to access the computer remotely during which time they copy financial and other sensitive files from your computer.  Depending on how your computer is set up, you may need to delete the malware from more than one place on your computer since some computer systems automatically create backup files to help with data recovery.  Run a good malware program yourself to clean the computer.  In addition to changing all your passwords, you should freeze your credit and get new numbers for your charge cards ASAP.  If you had medical records on your computer and you have medical insurance, you should notify your insurance company as well.  Other wise, you may find claims being filed with them in your name.  Identity theft is another real possibility.

That was my initial response as well, but it is a combination of scam and shaddiness.  Click on anything that says SPECIAL OFFER or FREE and you buy it.  The prices change without consultation, and it was listed as something to repair the software that manages my ports, and it is not that either.  Live and learn.  


Maybe it is simply a coincidence that following Advanced System Repair's download of software to repair my computer my computer barely worked this morning.  I tried running Norton, and it couldn't download the patches, because the internet connection was not working though the modem/router indicated no problems. I restarted the laptop and tried Malwarebytes, and I had to try downloading it multiple times before I succeeded in installing a copy on the Lenovo laptop.  It found multiple errors and repaired them.  I restarted the computer again, and ran a scan on Norton, and this time it downloaded the patches to the multiple problems it found.  I also downloaded Driver Easy and updated eight programs.  Now the computer works and it even recognizes the devices attached to the USB drives, but it does not wake up from sleep. Any ideas?


I googled this problem, and found many websites with suggestions on how to resolve the issue, but I couldn't find the keyboard functions where they stated it would be in some of the problems. I specified that the problems were on Windows 10, but maybe there are different versions of 10 with different solutions. Moreover,  I spilled a cup of coffee on the laptop a year ago, and it has a new keyboard, who knows what they installed, but the laptop woke up with no problem this past year, and maybe when I ran all those updates, it might have iinstalled instructions for the keyboard that should be there instead of what is actually on my computer.  There are multiple websites with fixes for this common problem, and I am scared of instroducing programs out of fear that they might be viruses, and the ones which seems safe thus far have not had any positive results.


Ten business days have passed, and Advanced System Repair has not returned my money as they said they would.  It is also impossible to get a hold of them.  You have to request a refund on their webpage, and I did not take a screen shot of it, so I have no documentation that the request was made.  I send an email to the person who supposedly helped me to install the system, and the email was returned with a message that the address was not found.  Norton now blocks all my efforts to contact them, but I wish they had done it before I paid them any money.  Maybe they used to be a legitemate business, but they no longer are.


Copihue said:

Ten business days have passed, and Advanced System Repair has not returned my money as they said they would.  It is also impossible to get a hold of them.  You have to request a refund on their webpage, and I did not take a screen shot of it, so I have no documentation that the request was made.  I send an email to the person who supposedly helped me to install the system, and the email was returned with a message that the address was not found.  Norton now blocks all my efforts to contact them, but I wish they had done it before I paid them any money.  Maybe they used to be a legitemate business, but they no longer are.

Have you tried what's on this page?

https://advancedsystemrepair.com/Refunds-Policy.php

Also, can you post the url of the page that Norton is blocking?


drummerboy said:I 

Have you tried what's on this page?

https://advancedsystemrepair.com/Refunds-Policy.php

Also, can you post the url of the page that Norton is blocking?

Yes, I did.  They were supposed to return the money in 7-10 working days, but they didn't.  So I called the bank and challenged the charge, and the next day I had it iin my account.  I don't know if it was the bank or the refund policy that worked, maybe they have bank holidays in Great Britain that I am not aware of, but it felt good to have my refund.  What is terrible is feeling cheated.  But I was made whole.

As far as the computer not being able to wake up, I ran a google search, and I had to try all five strategies first, but I just got the computer working again.  I am delighted.  

Having worked all my life, I always had tech support to fix any problem I had with my computers, so I knew nothing.  I feel so proud of myself for having fixed it myself now, my chest is twice as big now.  And I want to thank you all, because from all the times I have asked for help, and you have all generously offered your help, I have also learned how you guys think and go about resolving issues.  I would not have resolved the problems had it not been for learning how you guys do it.  Thank you.

I also learned what I have been doing wrong:  I thought the computer kept the programs up-to-date and running problem free.  Nope.  I added Malwares, and upgraded Norton, I bought a software to review my pc and find all out-of-date drivers.  This last feature allowed me to find a solution to my problem with the ports.  I can now see my topo maps in Garmin.  

It is difficult to solve problems when you don't know what you don't know.  Thanks again.  You are the best.


Copihue said:

drummerboy said:I 

Have you tried what's on this page?

https://advancedsystemrepair.com/Refunds-Policy.php

Also, can you post the url of the page that Norton is blocking?

Yes, I did.  They were supposed to return the money in 7-10 working days, but they didn't.  So I called the bank and challenged the charge, and the next day I had it iin my account.  I don't know if it was the bank or the refund policy that worked, maybe they have bank holidays in Great Britain that I am not aware of, but it felt good to have my refund.  What is terrible is feeling cheated.  But I was made whole.

As far as the computer not being able to wake up, I ran a google search, and I had to try all five strategies first, but I just got the computer working again.  I am delighted.  

Having worked all my life, I always had tech support to fix any problem I had with my computers, so I knew nothing.  I feel so proud of myself for having fixed it myself now, my chest is twice as big now.  And I want to thank you all, because from all the times I have asked for help, and you have all generously offered your help, I have also learned how you guys think and go about resolving issues.  I would not have resolved the problems had it not been for learning how you guys do it.  Thank you.

I also learned what I have been doing wrong:  I thought the computer kept the programs up-to-date and running problem free.  Nope.  I added Malwares, and upgraded Norton, I bought a software to review my pc and find all out-of-date drivers.  This last feature allowed me to find a solution to my problem with the ports.  I can now see my topo maps in Garmin.  

It is difficult to solve problems when you don't know what you don't know.  Thanks again.  You are the best.

Well, I'm glad you got your money back and things have straightened out.

Yes, solving computer technical issues and dealing with scammers can be extremely frustrating. I hope you have smooth sailing here on out.


Thank you.  I just read this in the papers this morning, and I believe that I may have fallen pray to this scam.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/09/16/scams-search-ads/?utm_campaign=ext_rweb&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=extension


Let me preface my post by saying that I never resolved the cursor problems.  It gets better for a while, and the problem returns.  Yesterday I discovered that I transferred money to the wrong payee.  I am never going to get that money back.  The two names were very different, so it couldn't have been the problem of hitting the wrong button.

But the more e problem is my IP address.  I have a blog in Blogger that deals with financing children's education, the planning part of it.  A few days back, maybe two days ago, I discovered that I can no longer access the FAFSA website or any of its other pages which are very useful.  I can reach them over my phone which has a different internet provider.  So I looked at the IP address which is located in Sao Paolo, Brazil.  That explains why I get Portuguese adds on Youtube.  I didn't think it was a big deal, so I let it be.  But when I got the notification that I could no longer address the financial aid info, it concerned me and I went to my provider.  

I was informed that I was hacked.  No one in Chile who uses my internet provider has a Brazilian IP address.  So I began thinking about where I might have been hacked.  The first thought was the issue I described in this thread which resulted in me getting permanent problems with the cursor.  Maybe that is not the only problem that they gave me, they asked permission to copy all of my computer information.  Second, I ran Norton.  I noticed that Norton says that its VPN service runs from Brazil.  I disconnected it, but it did not resolve the problem.  That is where my list of possibilities end.  

I tried changing service providers, but I was told that the IP address is in the configuration of my computer, and it will not change the IP address, is that so?  and they told me that it all my traffic has been changed, they could access all my financial accounts.  What should i do?


I am no longer in doubt.  My bank refused to process my payments though whoever hacked my ip address has not raided my accounts yet.  I am blocking them, but I am going to need money and help cleaning out my cyber life.  If you have trustworthy technical support to fix this, please let me know.


Note.  OP is in Chili.  Please keep that in mind when suggesting reliable resources that can help.


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