Imagine this: you received an email claiming that software was installed on your computer and that your webcam was hacked to film you visiting adult websites. There is also a ransom note to be paid in Bitcoin. The scammers eventually claim to send these videos to people on their contact list (which apparently was also copied via the malware) if they shouldn't pay the ransom.
This email
would be easy to ignore ... if the scammers didn't also claim they'd also
stolen your password using a keylogger. To prove this, there is even a
password in the email text that you are currently using or have used in the
past. This gives the threat of certain credibility.
--------------------------------------Never Pay the Ransom--------------------------------------
Blackmail
has become an integral part of the world of online crime. The
proliferation of cryptocurrencies offers criminals a secure and barely
traceable way to receive payments from their victims.
Fraudulent
online blackmail attempts are becoming increasingly popular with attackers to more easily steal their money from unsuspecting users. A
well-worded email is all you need.
Also, have
you ever received an email claiming that if you fail to respond to the claims,
a confidential or intimate video will be posted? We'll tell you how to
proceed then.
What Is Cyber Extortion About?
It's a fairly simple
scam. As the name suggests, fraudsters use the Internet to try to force
their victims to pay. In the past few weeks, there has been a massive
increase in these scams, with some being very successful. In the first
week of July 2018 alone, criminals were able to loot over USD 50,000, according to BleepingComputer.
It is and remains just a fraud. The email senders have
absolutely nothing against you and just use cheap scare tactics to make some
money quickly. Nothing malicious has been installed on your computer, you
have no access to your contacts, and there are no incriminating videos of you. Of
course, it is terrifying that they have your password, but it was certainly not
discovered through a keylogger. Instead, your credentials most likely come
from one of the countless data breaches that have hit large companies like
Adobe, LinkedIn, or Tumblr. Although it is worrying that your access data
is publicly floating around on the Internet for everyone, the fraudsters only
use this information to
What Should You Do if You Receive an
Extortionate Email?
1. Keep Calm and Ignore the Ransom Note.
Of course,
it is unsettling to receive an extortionate email. But don't panic and
don't pay the ransom under any circumstances. As I said, it is just an
attempt at fraud. The senders didn't have anything installed on your
computer, including no pictures or videos of you. So you can safely ignore
the threat and the ransom demand.
2. Change Your Password.
If the e-mail contains
your current password, change it on all pages on which you are currently using
it. Never use the same passwords for different accounts and activate
two-step authentication if possible. Also, check out our related article
for detailed tips on creating and storing strong passwords.
3. Check if Your Credentials Have Been
Stolen.
As mentioned earlier,
the scammers most likely found your credentials through a data breach. You
can check whether your accounts have been affected by such data breaches by
entering your email address at https://haveibeenpwned.com/. This
useful website lists any data breaches that your email address may have been
subject to. Change the password on each page that has an incident.
Dealing with Cyber Extortion
In the webcam scam,
users should be deprived of their money with simple blackmail tactics. Should
you ever receive any of these emails, ignore the ransom note, change your
password, and check to see if your email address has been compromised. For
even more peace of mind, you can also opt for a proven security solution like Protegent360 Antivirus.
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