Scammers typically get into an email address either via brute-force attacks or through a database leak. Once they’ve gained access, they can perform several actions with your email account. In this article from real money online slots, we will be covering some of the things scammers can do with access to your email address.
They Can Impersonate You
It’s common knowledge that you should never trust an email that isn’t from someone you trust. As such, those emails claiming you won $4 million in a lottery you never entered don’t trick people as easily anymore.
However, scammers are finding a way around this. While the tip makes us more critical of emails sent from a stranger, it also makes us more trusting of emails sent by people we know and love.
Scammers use this weakness by hacking email accounts and then using that accounts to contact the victim’s friends and family. If the scammer is good at impersonating people, they can trick the victim’s contacts into believing they’re talking to the victim.
From this point, the scammer can ask the victim to do whatever they please. They may claim that they’re in some financial trouble, asking their friends to transfer some money to the hacker. They could send a link to a malicious program and claim it’s a video of the friend doing something embarrassing.
As such, you should exercise caution, even if it’s supposedly your good friend sending you an email. If in doubt, try to contact them over the phone or via another method like social media to see if their request is legitimate, courtesy of top rated online casino.
They Can Steal Your Identity
If your account doesn’t contain sensitive business information, a hacker can instead settle for stealing your identity.
A hacker can harvest a lot of information from your emails. Invoices have your name and address in plain view, and the scammer can collect any photos you may have sent. If the hacker gets enough information, they can use the data to steal your identity and apply for services under your name.
Keep every source of personal information you have on the internet safe from prying eyes. It’s worth learning about the pieces of information used to steal your identity so you know what you can share, and what to hide.
They Can Use It to Crack Email-Based Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
Sometimes, a hacker will have the password to someone else’s account but will be stopped by an email-based two-factor authentication (2FA) system. Hackers can get through 2FA systems by getting hold of wherever the authentication codes are displayed.
Should a hacker gain access to your email account, they can get through any email-based 2FA measures you have set up.
Some websites send you an email when they detect an unusual login pattern. This email will ask you if the login attempt was genuine, and will usually give you a button to confirm the login attempt. Hackers can subvert this security measure if they have your email address by allowing their login attempt when the email comes in.
They Can Collect Sensitive Information
If the hacker gets access to a work email account, it could be devastating for the company. Any sensitive financial details, company login information, or passwords to physical locks are all visible to the hacker. This information allows them to perform digital or physical theft on the business.
Personal accounts may also have sensitive information hiding within their inboxes. Any banking correspondence may give away details that a scammer can use to make purchases on your behalf.
