'Your computer has been locked': no authority locks PCs like this

A screen announcing your computer has been locked — by the FBI, the police, Interpol, or Microsoft — for alleged illegal activity, demanding a 'fine' via gift cards, cash codes, or crypto to unlock it, is a scam. Law enforcement does not seize computers through browser pages or collect fines in gift cards. Underneath, it's either a full-screen web page or, occasionally, junk software — both removable without paying anyone.

Clear it

  1. Pay nothing, call nothing. There is no fine and no unlock code.
  2. Browser version: Esc, then end the browser in Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc → End task). Reopen without restoring pages.
  3. If it returns at every startup: restart into Safe Mode (hold Shift while choosing Restart → Troubleshoot → Startup Settings → Safe Mode), then uninstall anything installed around the time it appeared (Settings → Apps, sort by date) and run a full Windows Security scan.
  4. Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan afterward for a clean-bill check.

Why this costume works

The lock screen borrows authority: agency seals, legal-sounding violation lists, a case or reference number. Its weakness is always the payment rail — real fines are never collected through gift cards, prepaid codes, or crypto ATMs, and real agencies don't take payment to 'unlock' a personal computer at all.

Paid already? Gift-card and wire payments are hard to reverse, but speed matters: keep the cards/receipts and contact the card issuer and your bank immediately, then report it to your local police non-emergency line and the FTC (reportfraud.ftc.gov) — reports are how these operations get shut down.

Common questions

Is my computer really locked, or is it just the page? Almost always just the page: press Esc — if the browser frame reappears or full-screen exits, nothing was ever locked. If a program reopens the warning every time you start Windows, that's nuisance software, fixed by the safe-mode cleanup below, still not a real lock.

It used my name / IP address / city. Do they know me? Websites see your IP address, and IP addresses reveal a rough city — the page prints it back for effect. It has no file of evidence and no connection to any agency.

Related

Tech support scam pop-ups · Fake Windows Defender warning · Fake Error #268D3 · Fake ZEUS virus pop-up · Fake blue screen scam · Fake renewal email scam · Clicked a phishing link? · Fake Apple security warning · "Your computer has been locked" scam · Social Security scam calls · Fake Amazon account alerts · Someone has remote access to my computer