Me han hackeado el correo electrónico, ¿cómo recupero mi cuenta?

How do I know if my email has been hacked and how can I recover my account?

With the arrival of #StayAtHome, the increase in personal email communication skyrocketed. This surge has given savvy hackers a free hand to install hidden viruses and other malware in attachments and other common techniques.

How do I know if I’m being hacked and how do I avoid being hacked?

Your contacts receive messages that you did not send

Messages addressed to your friends or work contacts that appear to have been sent by you warn you that there’s a serious problem with your computer. Your friends might be confident enough to inform you that your email account has been compromised, but your professional or work contacts might not. Hackers can install malware on your computers through email attachments, and the attacker can easily obtain your passwords or use your address book to commit phishing email attacks.

I can’t access my email or my internet passwords stop working.

Since you regularly visit your favorite websites, you know the password for each one. While we can all hit the wrong key, it’s highly unlikely we’ll do it twice. When you find that the password doesn’t work (if, for example, you can’t access your email), you should consider the possibility that someone has hacked into your account.

Once inside your computer, hackers have a free hand to search for your passwords. Many people create a list of passwords for convenience, but such files can be hugely beneficial to hackers who find them.

The team is behaving slowly and erratically.

Unpredictable computer behavior may indicate that your email has been hacked. If the quick response you usually expect turns into a slow process, it’s a bad sign. Spyware, a type of malicious software, can track your online activity, manipulate your files, and even steal your private information.

Since spyware runs many background processes, it’s understandable that your computer’s speed will slow down significantly. While you probably haven’t noticed anything unusual when downloading an image from a website or clicking on an email attachment, they could be hiding a virus. Until you remove the virus and your account is no longer compromised, you may feel like someone is watching you.

Beware of ransomware

A particularly insidious form of malware is the ability to make you pay for the privilege of controlling your own computer. Ransomware can enter your system through emails, usually from unknown senders, and you allow it by clicking on the attachments. This type of software can lock your files and make them inaccessible. The attackers who introduced it demand a ransom to release their control of your system.

Ransomware is perhaps more dangerous than other malicious computer attacks, and it carries a penalty that can completely deny you access to your files and cost you money to recover your documents or email account. Now that you know that opening attachments can compromise your account and cause damage to your computer and your wallet, if you receive a suspicious ransomware message, be extremely cautious if you want to avoid being hacked.

What should I do if my email is hacked?

Change your password

If you’re wondering what to do if you’re hacked, the first security measure you should take to ensure the hacker can’t access your email account again is to change your password. The new password should be complex and unrelated to your previous ones. Always use 8 to 10 characters, and combine upper and lower case letters, as well as numbers and symbols.

Notify your email contacts immediately to avoid phishing.

A big part of the hacker’s strategy is to “get their hands on” your address book to attack other people with tactics like phishing. Send a message to all your email contacts as soon as possible. Warn them of the situation so they avoid opening any (probably malware-infected) emails sent by you to avoid being hacked.

Change your security questions

If you have security questions associated with your email account, don’t forget to change them. Use unpredictable and very specific questions.

Enable multi-factor authentication

Multi-factor authentication adds an extra step to the login process, but also another layer of protection. When you activate it, in addition to your password, you’ll need a unique, one-time code to log in. This code is typically sent to your mobile phone.

Scan your computer for malware and viruses

This step is essential if you’re wondering how to tell if you’ve been hacked. Comprehensive security software provides a shield for your digital life. McAfee Total Protection lets you protect all your devices, including your smartphone, from viruses and malware. It also includes a password manager to help you remember and generate unique passwords for each of your accounts.

Change other accounts that have the same password

This task is time-consuming, but it’s a worthwhile effort to prevent hacking. Make sure to change any other accounts that use the same username and password as the compromised email account. Hackers love it when we use the same login information for multiple accounts.

Don’t let your guard down

Although email can pose potential risks, antivirus software protects your computer system from potential damage. This software runs in the background to detect and eliminate threats. By being aware of the risks and preparing for them, you can thwart attempts to steal your private data and make your digital life more secure.