The battle is on and you’re a potential target. It doesn’t matter what you do to protect yourself from data theft, it is a real possibility.
Like a bank robbery, cyber threats will always be a present danger. As technology continues to advance, new methods of thievery are being devised.
You can, however, try to stay out of the crossfire. Keeping aware of the different password hacking methods used to steal your data is the first step in tightening your own security measures.
How Safe Are You from Password Hacking?
The most common form of hacking involves password and username theft. Our online passwords fail in every imaginable way when it comes to cyber security.
There are a variety of strategies hackers use to break into your accounts and steal your password. These three common methods are the first in the line of fire on your security.
Password Scavenging/Recycling
Most hackers rely on other more adept cyber criminals to grab your password and username. Scavenging takes place when the top-level hackers put stolen passwords hacked by compromising a database into a temporary public document for others to grab and use.
Once these hackers have their hands on your information, they try your password out on known services like PayPal. Imagine the fun they have when they discover that these users have the same password across many different accounts!
Phishing
Most of us have been recipients of attempted phishing because we have an email account. Hackers try to get your password and username (as well as your money) by pretending to be a website or company you trust.
The email will appear to be valid and authentic. Last week I received one from Delta airlines saying my ticket was attached and ready for printing. Funny thing is, I don’t recall planning on traveling to Oakland, CA!
Sometimes the emails are from your friends, but they normally will contain little information except the infected link.
Cloud Breaching
There’s a new school of hacking that’s rivaling phishing. This new wave of password theft involves breaching the cloud where vast amounts of data lie. If you weren’t already nervous about password theft, this new development is worth your attention.
Thanks to the recent news of the celebrity photo iCloud breach, more people are learning about this vulnerability. In the case of the celebrities, Apple said in a statement that certain celebrity accounts were compromised by “a very targeted attack on user names, passwords and security questions.”
Because we tend to reuse our passwords and usernames in multiple accounts, your personal information stored in the cloud is ripe for exploitation as one service allows entry into another. Tricking customer service agents into resetting passwords is a growing complication to this devastating method.
Stay tuned for more password hacking methods next week, followed by what you can do to protect yourself. Even the Wild West was eventually tamed.