The e-mail is indispensable as a communication medium. Accordingly, the email is also popular as an attack target of hackers. It also doesn’t matter if you send important data or which accounts you log in to with your e-mail address. The hackers are interested in all the data they can get. Hacked emails are therefore one of the biggest threats on the Internet. The correct handling of hacked mails is therefore important in order to minimize the damage. In this article, we will explain what you can do when your emails are hacked.
An e-mail account usually contains numerous contact details. Not only the own, but also addresses of the recipients or of subscribed newsletters and so on. This data is a found feeding for hackers.
Hackers can, for example, conduct targeted phishing if they can assign contact details and names. It can go even further if the recipients of the mails are blackmailed. Or they get false reminders to tempt them to pay.
Hacked emails can cause long-term and far-reaching damage. Not only your own account is affected.
Unfortunately, it’s not so easy to see when you’ve been hacked. Hackers leave a trace of their crimes.
Signs of hacked emails can be found mainly in unusual changes and processes that cannot be explained to themselves.
At the top of the list is a changed password. If you suddenly stop coming into your mailbox with your password, it was safely hacked and the password changed. The first step is of course to change the password again. However, the damage has already been done.
If the password is not changed, a lot of damage can still be done with a hacked email. For example, emails are sent on your behalf that can redistribute the malware. So check your folder for mails sent. If it contains emails that you did not write yourself, someone has gained unauthorized access to your mailbox.
Even emails that suddenly disappear can be a sign of a hacker attack. Was a mail yesterday still there and can be found today in the trash or not at all. It was probably deleted by someone else, indicating a hack.
So the signs are quite obvious when you know what to look for.
Of course, precaution is best. Use secure passwords and a 2FA to prevent hackers from accessing your account.
Unfortunately, one hundred percent security never exists. If you are the victim of a hack, you should first change the password. Many e-mail providers also have security issues. This should also be amended.
By the way, the change of the password should best be changed via the “Forgot password” function. Then you will receive a new password. This is safer than changing the password itself, because hackers may also be able to access the new password.
A virus scan on your computer should also run. To make sure that no malware has reached your hard drive.
It is also useful to inform your contacts if they have received strange emails from your account. Reporting to the e-mail provider can also help improve security.
A hack is a criminal offence. You can also file a complaint against Unknown with the police.
A hacked email can cause a lot of damage. This damage must not be limited to your own account. All contacts may be affected in the long term as the data is collected or further malware is sent to these contacts. Viruses can also spread to your computer’s hard drive, causing even greater damage.
