I use Goo's Chrome browser and have an Android phone.
This morning I started getting phone calls, emails and Farcebook messages that my gmail.com account had been hacked and was being used to circulate a phishing email attachment.
My email contacts list in gmail is gone. My phone numbers, addresses etc. stored in my phone are gone. I have changed passwords and hurriedly shit-canned a billfold full of credit and debit cards.
uestion, what do I do now? Is there any way to get my info back, or am I on the wrong end of the Greek?
- Poppa_Viagra
- 06-23-2015, 04:17 PM
- skbinks
- 06-23-2015, 05:46 PM
Great example of why to keep backups. Depending on your cell phone company, by default it might save your contacts for you.
- ck1942
- 06-24-2015, 06:23 AM
Issues with Google, sigh! Sorry for yours, but you won't be alone....happens to many people every day.
Almost even sometimes best to just start over with a new G Mail account. With high security in choosing passwords, backup and make sure that G has your account cell phone in its data base so that when there are suspicious actions, they will freeze the account, text a code to your cell phone and you must use the code to unfreeze the account.
Maybe as extreme as even getting a new cell phone carrier and phone number.
Thing is ... using an android (or an iPhone too probably) to surf the 'net will always turn up some sort of malware when you go to places that you don't know are already trustworthy.
At least with a cell carrier, they have your credit card number on file, so you can (maybe) if you lose stuff or get hacked, use the CC to verify you are you. Gmail doesn't work that way cause you cannot buy Gmail, although you can use a CC to buy a hotmail/outlook account. I recommend, if your supplier allows, that you use PayPay for your payment interface, that way only PP has your CC data, not the supplier.
There's a good chance, fwiw, that your cell carrier may be able to do a data dump of your in and out phone numbers for the past few months and then you could send all of them a text and ask who you are texting as a way to recapture the names that go with the phones.
For back up purposes in gmail (or other mail products) you should have at least two or three back up mail accounts unknown to anyone except yourself. Then, you "export" your primary mail contact list to your unlisted email contacts. The other thing you can do (I do) is when you are sending out important mail, include your alternate email as a BCC; or forward important incoming mail to your blind account.
Thing is, when (not IF) your mail gets hacked yet again, the hacker(s) can immediately look at your sent mail and discover to whom you sent stuff, including your blind account.
Best of luck out there!
Almost even sometimes best to just start over with a new G Mail account. With high security in choosing passwords, backup and make sure that G has your account cell phone in its data base so that when there are suspicious actions, they will freeze the account, text a code to your cell phone and you must use the code to unfreeze the account.
Maybe as extreme as even getting a new cell phone carrier and phone number.
Thing is ... using an android (or an iPhone too probably) to surf the 'net will always turn up some sort of malware when you go to places that you don't know are already trustworthy.
At least with a cell carrier, they have your credit card number on file, so you can (maybe) if you lose stuff or get hacked, use the CC to verify you are you. Gmail doesn't work that way cause you cannot buy Gmail, although you can use a CC to buy a hotmail/outlook account. I recommend, if your supplier allows, that you use PayPay for your payment interface, that way only PP has your CC data, not the supplier.
There's a good chance, fwiw, that your cell carrier may be able to do a data dump of your in and out phone numbers for the past few months and then you could send all of them a text and ask who you are texting as a way to recapture the names that go with the phones.
For back up purposes in gmail (or other mail products) you should have at least two or three back up mail accounts unknown to anyone except yourself. Then, you "export" your primary mail contact list to your unlisted email contacts. The other thing you can do (I do) is when you are sending out important mail, include your alternate email as a BCC; or forward important incoming mail to your blind account.
Thing is, when (not IF) your mail gets hacked yet again, the hacker(s) can immediately look at your sent mail and discover to whom you sent stuff, including your blind account.
Best of luck out there!
- YoHou
- 06-27-2015, 11:07 PM
You changed your passwords, but what about your security questions to reset your password?
I highly recommend you enable Two Factor Authorization to protect your gmail accounts. When you log in with your password you verify it with a code sent via SMS or an authenticator app and enter that as well. Boils down to having two passwords one which you know and one random one to verify that it's you via a random code.
I highly recommend you enable Two Factor Authorization to protect your gmail accounts. When you log in with your password you verify it with a code sent via SMS or an authenticator app and enter that as well. Boils down to having two passwords one which you know and one random one to verify that it's you via a random code.