HACKED!!!!!
Anyone that knows me, knows that my favourite saying is 'I hate tech'.
Today is no exception! I have recently been hacked. Passwords were changed, accounts were accessed, it was a complete mess.
I am lucky in that my brother is a tech wizz and managed to sort everything out for me in double quick time and had everything changed and backed up before any real damage was done.
How did this happen?
Looking at the malware report, it appears that I clicked a link in discord (even though I am very careful not to do this as I know this is a way that these shits get you). I have done this regardless of my awareness of the potential threat.
The link downloaded a trojan virus onto my computer without me knowing that was accessing all of my keystrokes and god knows what else!
I could have easily lost all of my crypto as well as personal information and more.
How did you realize you had been hacked?
There were a couple of warning signs. The first was I had been in conversations with another online user, I won't give out the details, but basically there are a few of us who have been targeted, so I was already nervous about the issue.
The second giveaway was when my emails were accessed and they tried to block me from my own account. Luckily I had set up a backup to be contacted if my emails were accessed anywhere other than my machine and this was triggered and my account was locked until I could verify my ID and get everything changed safely.
Advice to stop this happening?
If I have any advice for people, it would be to make sure you have a good malware program on your computer and you use 2FA wherever possible. Also, do not store your private keys and passwords on your computer. Print them off and keep them in a safe place.
Have systems in place to make it hard for these 'people' to get access to your information, otherwise by the time you realize what is happening, it could already be too late...
Stay internet safe guys!
Thank you for stopping by! Much love, Cheryl xx
BTS address: bb-bulldogs
Btw, If you still haven’t signed up to the DrugWars game, you can join here for free:
https://staging.drugwars.io/#!/ref/@beautifulbullies
When you say this, I have to ask cause I do this daily... was it from a group, someone you know or just a random link> Because now I am SO hesitant to it anymore.
This is the problem, I don't actually know because I don't remember doing it. I knew there was a virus going around which pops up as a 'click to upgrade your sound' discord message, so I have never clicked that, so it has to be a link from a group. I don't remember anyone sending me a link in DM so it can't be that.
Glad you caught it quickly and got it under control, working closely with out IT and Cyber Security teams i know that this is a growing threat and we all have to take all the precautions we can to avoid being hacked, but even then sometimes they get through
I really don't know about computers at all. It is scary how easy they can get access to all of your information. Hopefully my bro has set things up now on my computer so it is more secure, but still very troubling!
It is troubling but if your bro recovered it so quickly it’s most likely he also set it up as safe as possible
I'm really glad you got it caught! Nicely done.
I use Linux, don't have any windows (or safari for that matter) programs on any of my machines. Security was not the reason I started on Linux but has been a nice bonus.
That said, I have used encrypted email for years and take great pains to manage my sensitive passwords. I use push notification for any financial work at all.
Thanks for the reminder. There are bad people out there and I'm glad you didn't get completely sucked in.
Thanks Big T, yes someone else has mentioned Linux, I will have to check it out. The worst part is I don't understand how it happened as I am so careful not to click links in discord, but obviously I have done somewhere along the line without realising it.
This i s so scary...a link in Discord????? Was this one of our groups? I have some unknown people message me but I didn't respond. Yikes, this is worrisome @beautifulbullies! Thank goodness for your brother!
yes he is my guardian angel!
Good grief that sucks. I’m sorry this happened to you. I am so glad your brother was able to act fast and stop it from going any further.
I’m so grateful my husband is in IT (and studies cyber security) and he is teaching me ways to stay safe while online. I try to be cautious when on Discord and not enter any personal info there. If someone I trust needs any of my info I always share it outside of the server. It’s just so much crap going on you have to always be cautious.
Thanks for sharing about your experience as it will keep us on our toes and vigilant. I hope you never have to go through this again.
Ah I am glad your hubby is in IT, I was also lucky with my brother. If he hadn't have known what to do, it would have ended so differently I am sure!
Hopefully sharing my experience will stop someone else getting hacked too. It is important for us all to be reminded just how vulnerable we are now and again I guess.
Yes this was such a great and needed reminder!!
Sorry to hear this, and thanks for the warning. I never, ever click on links sent in Messenger or by text or email, but it had never occurred to me that this could happen via Discord. I will remember your warning.
I store all my private keys and passwords offline. But I would still hate my computer to be taken over in this way. It happened to websites I owned a few years ago, and it was the fault of the service provider, and they dealt with it dreadfully. Needless to say, I was furious and changed to a new ISP.
Yes, apparently the virus is really common in discord. If you do click links in discord, I would suggest running a malware scan just to be on the safe side. I would hate for it to be happening to you too!
wow!
so scary... I am glad it all turned out OK.
they managed to put a Keystroke sniffer on your mac laptop?
it appears so! I don't understand it all, but yes it was copying my keystrokes and perhaps more. I just don't know. :/
Odd, Cheryl.
Someone needs to be physically in front of your Mac,
or, you personally need to add your Admin password to allow any keystroke logger to be installed.
Very odd on a Macintosh
it was my windows laptop, not sure if that makes a difference? I hate tech lol
It does make a difference. HUGE difference!
You would have been world famous as the first person ever hacked on a Mac, in this fashion.
lol then maybe I should get a Mac! sounds much safer! xD
This is why you should Install and use Linux. :-)
Don't forget, you can upvote peoples comments too!
linux? I might have to look at that, thanks!
You'll probably be best off with Ubuntu. 😊
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One thing all of us here fear the most is being hacked, luckily you managed to save your.
I was lucky. Hopefully this will remind everyone to stay vigilant so nobody here gets attacked
Yup, thanks for sharing!
Luckily you were aware of what was happening before any real damage could be done. Thanks for the post, it is a good reminder to be aware all the time.
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Thank you felt.buzz. Yes it was a wakeup call for me too! I will be scanning every 2 minutes from now on lol