Well I Got Hacked Again
By pyewacket
@pyewacket (43903)
United States
March 16, 2010 9:18pm CST
Gee life is fun isn't it? I had originally planned to do a lot today and night but instead have been having other fun. NOT
Some months ago, my email address was hacked into. Everyone on my contact address list was sent a bogus email supposedly from me, but of course it wasn't from me but a hacker. I contacted Yahoo and they told me all the things I should do to correct the problem..did, done.
Well I didn't get to my computer until maybe around 4 a.m.....my email was flooded by my friends asking me, did I send this? Yup, you guessed it, my account was hacked again and everyone in my contacts was spammed by a hacker posing as me.
BUT THAT ISN'T THE WORST OF IT---whoever hacked into my account deleted all my contact info from my "address book"--all my friends, and other contact info. Thankfully, I had the smarts that when I was hacked before I made copies of all my contacts and not only transferred them (by hand, not automatic import/export) to three other email addys. AND I even saved the listing of contacts as a PDF file, a document, and printed it up to have a hard copy of all my info.
Now I know some would say I should completely change my Yahoo addy, thing is I do have a LOT of other things stored in a zillion of folders there and it would take me virtually a year and a day to transfer all that info and yes did contact Yahoo again. It's not just Yahoo though that this seems to happen to. Two of my friends recently got their emails hacked one had a AOL email the other hotmail.
Anyone recently get their email address hacked into? Did you loose your address book of contacts as well? To say the least this is very frustrating and I never noticed a compromise in my email before until more involvement with Facebook...and some think there is a connection somehow
Some months ago, my email address was hacked into. Everyone on my contact address list was sent a bogus email supposedly from me, but of course it wasn't from me but a hacker. I contacted Yahoo and they told me all the things I should do to correct the problem..did, done.
Well I didn't get to my computer until maybe around 4 a.m.....my email was flooded by my friends asking me, did I send this? Yup, you guessed it, my account was hacked again and everyone in my contacts was spammed by a hacker posing as me.
BUT THAT ISN'T THE WORST OF IT---whoever hacked into my account deleted all my contact info from my "address book"--all my friends, and other contact info. Thankfully, I had the smarts that when I was hacked before I made copies of all my contacts and not only transferred them (by hand, not automatic import/export) to three other email addys. AND I even saved the listing of contacts as a PDF file, a document, and printed it up to have a hard copy of all my info.
Now I know some would say I should completely change my Yahoo addy, thing is I do have a LOT of other things stored in a zillion of folders there and it would take me virtually a year and a day to transfer all that info and yes did contact Yahoo again. It's not just Yahoo though that this seems to happen to. Two of my friends recently got their emails hacked one had a AOL email the other hotmail.
Anyone recently get their email address hacked into? Did you loose your address book of contacts as well? To say the least this is very frustrating and I never noticed a compromise in my email before until more involvement with Facebook...and some think there is a connection somehow14 people like this
22 responses
@Hatley (163776)
• Garden Grove, California
17 Mar 10
hi melanie I just found the email message to me from your hacker and emailed you back that another hacker attempt had been done. I knew from the way the message was written it had to be someone using English as a second language, also this could be a virus on one of your friends address book that is sending emails out to all your contacts too, sou nds like a really bad virus. I had this happen to me once and I got a bunch of emails from people I did not know who were all mad as sin.,it does sound like a trojan horse thing. by the way do you have a wall like Zone alarm to stop hackers from getting into your computer? zone alarm is really good and it stops them at the source, they cannot get into your file and do all this damage. wow. the nerve of whoever d oes this. I know there are probably others like zone alarm that are good but zone alarm I have used and know it really works.
4 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
I'm pooped...LOL. Don't ask how many of my friends have emailed me about this but they all suspected it wasn't from me since as you say whoever was writing it didn't use proper grammar or spelling of a few words. I don't think it's virus though...I'm well protected
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
Oh btw..I was checking out zone alarm...it's for PC computers only not Macs
@catdla1 (6005)
• United States
17 Mar 10
I hate pointing fingers, especially when I may be wrong. But, the only virus I've gotten in 6 years was just after I joined a group in Facebook. Now the only thing I'll do there is send messages to friends, or comment on wall statements. I'm afraid to do anything else there.
I don't want to give it up entirely, because I've gotten in touch with lots of old classmates, but I won't do the games or join groups anymore.
Glad you have copies of your address books, Pye!
4 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
Yeah I remember you telling me about the Facebook connection..a few others think the same thing
2 people like this
@sacmom (14192)
• United States
17 Mar 10
Hey pye. I got that email as well. I had a feeling it wasn't from you, especially with the subject line reading "Happy Shopping !" so I didn't bother opening it up.
I didn't bother to send an email to you about it. I remember what happened last time and figured you'd get swamped with enough emails from people without me adding to it.
I've been wanting to change my yahoo email address/ID for a while now. But like you, I have a bunch of things stored on there, so I continue to use it. Fortunately for me it hasn't gotten hacked into (knock on wood), otherwise I might just take the time to make a new ID.
Good luck getting this mess sorted out.
Happy mylotting!
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
Yes as you can imagine a lot of my friends sent emails to me asking if I sent that bogus email..I spent all late day and into the night just replying to people
@BarBaraPrz (47332)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
17 Mar 10
Fun fun fun...
I seem to send myself spam but haven't heard from anyone else if they get any from me.
If it does have something to do with Fakebook, then I'm even more glad that I never got into it.
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
I seem to get spam mail at another email address from me too...LOL
2 people like this
@zandi458 (28102)
• Malaysia
17 Mar 10
You remind me of an email I receive yesterday purportedly from you. It is rare to receive such email from you knowing that you are always busy and promoting something might not be of your interest. So far, touch-wood, my accounts with any of the email providers are still safely intact. I do have an account with facebook but am not too active there. But I can't discount any future possibilities that I end up a victim too as I am a member of few social sites.
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
Yeah if you ever see an email like that you can bet it didn't come from me
I know quite a number of my friends whose email addresses were hacked into lately--it seems to be getting to be a more common thing
I know quite a number of my friends whose email addresses were hacked into lately--it seems to be getting to be a more common thing
@zed_k4 (17589)
• Singapore
17 Mar 10
Wow, Pye.. that must have been such a frustrating moment for you. I hate when that happens to me. Lately, it was on Facebook, and I couldn't send nor receive any messages. And then when things were fine, hotmail started to act up on me. Funny though, because I have some other accounts and they were fine, and only 2 accounts were affected. I then thought that I should have another email program on, with a strong security...but then I thought why not make a backup like you have done.
So yeah, like you too, I'm still sticking to the same addresses, only changing my passwords regularly and also with the backup, I can never go panicky. I dare not say it's connected to Facebook, but well, the coincidences are there for me too.. so it might be. But it might not.. since hackers on email programs have started way before Facebook. Anyway, if you receive any youtube url links on Facebook, don't open them. I got a reminder not to open them as they are viruses sent behalf of my friends accounts.
3 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
17 Mar 10
I have a number of email accounts and they weren't affected either but do think there is some kind of Facebook connection...and yeah, I was warned about links to supposed Youtube videos to but are viruses...someone must have a lot of time on their hands to create all this havoc
3 people like this
@zed_k4 (17589)
• Singapore
17 Mar 10
Facebook is filled with too many games, so these viruses have a chance to loom. I just fear that someone can access through our Facebook passwords..hope that won't happen. Trying to change password on FB often now.. and I suppose for emails too. Yup, just like those animal abusers on FB.. with nothing better to do.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
18 Mar 10
LOL--I got a lot of emails asking me if I sent that dumb email..nope didn't
@rsa101 (38166)
• Philippines
17 Mar 10
I am shocked by your hacker why he/she targets your email address so often. I do have one incident that emailed me saying that I am his former teacher and told me to change password because there was someone that emailed him coming from my email address and told him that he hacked my account. So I changed my password immediately and so far my email address is doing good. From time to time, I do receive email from someone I do not know and I just ignore them.
3 people like this
@moondancer (7433)
• United States
17 Mar 10
It is frustrating when this happens. I also have had it happen to me a couple of times. I do remember getting something from you and sending you an email to let you know. I knew it was not you because of the way the email was. It had many if not all of your email listed as people it was sent to. This also happened with my husband and that is what first alerted me to this happening. This is also how mine got hacked is through an email from what I thought was him.
2 people like this
@moondancer (7433)
• United States
17 Mar 10
ooops I forgot, no thankfully my email addresses were not deleted.
1 person likes this
@moondancer (7433)
• United States
18 Mar 10
Speaking of these kind...I just forwarded one to you and asked if you had sent it to me...which I don't think you did. But if so, I was going to check out the site.
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
18 Mar 10
Another way email addresses can be hacked are by those forwards...hate to say it, but now when I get them I just delete them...one never knows if one of the email addresses listed in a long line of address is the hacker and don't know how many times that particular forward has been circulating around and where
@paula27661 (15811)
• Australia
19 Mar 10
It has not ever happened to me. I remember when your account was hacked the first time...I was not aware that your contacts etc could be deleted! I back my personal emails every week to disc and now I’m considering doing so with my Gmail account too. Goodness me, you’ve had your share of hassles haven’t you? Interesting that the problems started when you got more involved with Facebook...Uhmmm...Hope that’s the end of it, that’s all I can say!
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
Guess what though? I found my contacts...somehow they wound up in the "Deleted Contacts" section...they were all there...yahooooooo
1 person likes this
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
18 Mar 10
Some time ago I received an email from a friend and she asked me if I had sent her some spam emails. I never send that kind of things to other people and I am pretty sure that someone hacked into my email. I don't know if the person sent spam to other people as well, because it is an old email account, and most of the adresses belong to people that I am no longer in touch with as I use an another email to write to my friends. Nothing was deleted from my address book, and it seems that the person only want to send out spam emails. I have changed my password, and I haven't had any problems since that time.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
As you can imagine I got a lot of emails from my friends asking about that bogus email...most knew it wasn't from me since it had a lot of grammatical errors and misspellings. Being a writer I just wouldn't write that way
1 person likes this
@quita88 (3715)
• United States
17 Mar 10
Thank God you mentioned Facebook. I swear even tho I got in touch with many old friends in Facebook I've had troubles with my gmail and getting all these bogus mails asking me to be their freinds.
It has stopped now tho.
I didn't know any of them except one and she is an enemy from way back when.
I don't think changing your email addy would make any difference. Somehow you got hacked into and Yahoo is a good email service.
I still will take your advice and make a page of contact names and send them to my other email addies---I have them in writing but I'd rather have them embedded in another email source.
I just also re did my AVG anti virus and had troubles getting my computer to come back on after rebooting it.
I don't have a back up computer since our last ice storm fried my desk top but kinda think now is a good time to start seriously hunting a new one.
I do so thank you for telling me this. It has opened my eyes.
God bless,
quita88
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
I've heard friends who have had their email addresses hacked not only from having Yahoo, but AOL and gmail, so I guess none are really safe from something like this happening. Not only did I store my email contacts at other email addresses but saved them as PDF files in my documents
@kaylachan (69824)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
18 Mar 10
Have you stopped to consider the possibility that a virous attached itself to your e-mail adress through yahoo? Sometimes that can happen. Most virous love to attack e-mails. I've had yahoo for years as I do have several aol e-mails two hotmail several gmail and two clearwire. none of which ever recieved a problem.
Make sure your system is free and clean.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
to quote you skysuccess: At least someone from the US is seeing in the same light of things with a non US citizen.
Uh excuse me what does that have to do with anything?
And while Mac computers aren't as likely NOT to be affected, I know they aren't immune either and yes my system is free and clean
@skysuccess (8858)
• Singapore
19 Mar 10
kaylachan,
My exact sentiments here
but I just do not seem to get through this individual who thinks that Macs are immune and that her set is not being compromised or corrupted.
At least someone from the US is seeing in the same light of things from a non US citizen.
but I just do not seem to get through this individual who thinks that Macs are immune and that her set is not being compromised or corrupted.
At least someone from the US is seeing in the same light of things from a non US citizen.1 person likes this
@skysuccess (8858)
• Singapore
19 Mar 10
P.S.
Sorry for the error but the last sentence should read:
At least someone from the US is seeing in the same light of things with a non US citizen.
1 person likes this
@dr9rim (247)
• Australia
17 Mar 10
having the contact list erased does sound like an email virus. i'm not so sure of how it works but generally it goes after the contact list/address book and sends out emails. and being a virus, most would have very bad intention and deleting contact list sounds bad enough.
another way people can get into your account (email, social networking, interner banking, whatever) is through phishing sites. a fake login page that's the exact duplicate of the site. i had a bad experience with a fake myspace.com login page and in the end i decided to delete my accout. lucky it was not an internet banking thing :P
3 people like this
@Thoroughrob (11742)
• United States
18 Mar 10
I have never had it happen, but a friend of mine did. She had an awful time. They kept sending things to all her contacts.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
A lot of my other friends have been having the same problem too
1 person likes this
@gabs8513 (48686)
• United Kingdom
1 Apr 10
I hope it will not happen again to you Pye as I know my Daughters and other Friends had their hacked many a time and I do not get it why Yahoo is not looking into the Matter
I stopped using Yahoo years ago as nothing was safe with them ever
Hope that you have it sorted
@xfahctor (14118)
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
20 Mar 10
Your not alone, Pye. A lot of people with yahoo accounts had this happen recently. I don't think it has anything to do with your computer itself, someone in all likelyhood used a script and obtained a massive number of yahoo accounts passwords. The attack likely took place against yahoo's servers rather than peoples home computers. My girlfriend got her's whacked in to as well. All she did was go in and change her yahoo password and the spam comming out of her account stopped imediately.
My ex girlfriend got hers hacked as well and now I am recieving spam emails to my cell phone from it. I have no way to get a hold of her anymore and she doesn;'t use the account that got hacked any more so it would do no good to contact her and tell her through it. I guess I'm stuck with them for now...lol.
1 person likes this
@xfahctor (14118)
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
21 Mar 10
I am guessing the script does operate in alphabetical order. the list was probably farmed off the net. It probably runs down a list of potential user names and "brute force" attempts a seriese of passowrds to gain access. I was not aware this had happened with other email servers too. I guess it might be a good idea to change my hotmail password.
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
21 Mar 10
It could also be some software allowing hackers to acquire email addresses with similar names in the address. I've gotten spam mail and each and every name listed had my first name as part of the email address--it's not only a Yahoo problem since I've had friends whose email addresses were hacked and they had AOL, hotmail or gmail
@nova1945 (1612)
• United States
17 Mar 10
This has happened to me 3 times! Did not lose my contacts, but everyone got an email from some company I never heard of, including me, trying to sell them products. I have hotmail and gmail as well as yahoo. Two of the three were hit.
I know you have a Mac. I thought those were safe from virus and hackers.????
I think your only option is to ride it out, it will go away eventually.
Good luck.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
Does seem the fates are picking on me lately, doesn't it
1 person likes this
@nijolechu (1842)
• Canada
18 Mar 10
It really is annoying to get hacked into with your email address. I sometimes even get weird messages from the people in my contact list. Then I realized that they wouldn't send that kind of stuff to me. So I guess their computers and email addresses were compromised too. I have never had my email hacked into before. But I do feel your frustration. I hope you can fix your problem right away.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
20 Mar 10
Most of my friends knew that email wasn't from me as it had a lot of grammatical errors and even misspellings, which is something I wouldn't do since I'm a writer.
