Am I being hacked?

This is not a straight forward Q&A but generally speaking you are not being hacked. There are a few things to look for that we should be concerned about:

• Credit Cards and Bank Account:

  • Do you see any unusual activity here that is not yours?

    • If there are purchases being made or attempts to login to your accounts that are not from you or a family member then you should take immediate action:

      • Change your passwords: This should go without saying but is a common problem in the technology era. Passwords are not meant to last forever so you should update them occasionally. Generally once per year should help secure your accounts. We recommend using a password keeper to save passwords and utilize one strong password to remember to access them. If you use Chrome for your web browser then you can setup password saving there but make sure your account is secured with multi-factor authentication. Android and Apple phones also offer this and will make sure you are alerted if someone is trying to access your account. Below are links on how to setup password management:

        • Google Chrome and Android

        • Apple Phone

      • Freeze your credit: There are 3 credit reporting agencies that banks, lenders, and other financial instituions rely on to verify your identity and borrowing power. We recommend that you always keep your credit frozen at all three agencies in order to help prevent identity theft. You should permanently freeze your credit at all three agencies. Each one will allow you to temporarily unfreeze your credit if you are applying for a new credit card, bank account, or loan. Below are links to each institution that will allow you to sign up and freeze your credit.

        • Experian

        • Transunion

        • Equifax

      • GO DO THIS NOW, it takes 5 minutes

• Text Messages and Emails

  • If you are receiving text messages or emails that your account has been hacked you can rest assured this is not true. Do not click any links they are sending you. This is just attempt by hackers to get you to click their link and give them your sign on information.

  • However, if you get a message from Google or Apple that someone is trying to login to your account (and it is not you) then you should change your password.

• Phone

  • If you get a notification or popup on a website that your phone or account has been hacked delete the notification and close the website. Your account is safe as long as you follow our recommendation of updating passwords annually.

• Phone Calls

  • If someone calls you about an account or computer being hacked or locked out then you should hang up. No company will ever call you regarding a hack. Do not ever give login information to anyone over the phone and never allow someone to access your computer or phone remotely.