When you had access to the internet for the first time ways back to years, you must have either create your mailing address on Yahoo or Hotmail. Though, you might not actively you those mailing address. But those address still vulnerable to being hacked. News regarding million of the users account been hacking has been in surface form time to time. But this time the number is not in million but billion of accounts has been compromised. This Wednesday, Yahoo revealed that account of 1 billion account user had been compromised by the recent hack.
With a record number of the user account being compromised yours might be among them. The recent hack has exposed names. Email addresses, telephone numbers, date of birth, encrypted passwords and unencrypted security question.
Here is how you can know if your account information has been stolen by the hacker:
Log into your Yahoo account
Yahoo once had 1 billion active users but with a better alternative, there are only 225 million active users according to reports. Like most of the users, you might not be an active user of the Yahoo mail anymore. But, log into your Yahoo account if you haven’t, Yahoo is sending the notification to the users who’s account is breached by the recent hack. You should be receiving notification if your account is affected.
Change your password
If you have not used the account then your password has been same for a long time, so first, change your password. The company has said that the hacked used tool called bcryt to decrypt the passwords which were encrypted. This kind of encryption can potentially be broken with enough persistence, said Brett McDowell, executive director of the FIDO Alliance, a nonprofit group that vets login systems.
That’s especially true “when the attacker can make relatively accurate guesses at what the password might be,” McDowell said. “Yahoo users with relatively weak or obvious passwords should take the recommended precautions.”
Do you have a habit of using the same password on multiple accounts?
Most of the people have the habit of using the same password on multiple accounts, so they won’t have to remember the password for individual accounts. The recent hack has taught us that this terrible idea. If you have the same password then the hacker can access all your accounts. This can make your online banking and other accounts vulnerable.
So don’t let them and change passwords of all your accounts where you have used the same password.
Change your security questions and answers
Since the recent hack has exposed the not encrypted security questions, change those security questions. If those security questions are used on other accounts, change them too. If you are not sure, change them too.
This could be a headache, but this can save you from future inconvenience. Those security questions can be used to verify identity and gain account access without the help of email verification.
Enable two-step verification
If you plan to keep your Yahoo account, enable two-step verification. It’s one of the best forms of account security widely available on sites like Yahoo. Two-step means that after you log in with your password (as usual) Yahoo will text you a security code, which you’ll enter in the next step.
This way, only someone who has in-person access to your phone (you) can access your account — even if the password entered was correct.
As with changing your security questions on all services, take the time to enable two-step verification on other websites, like Facebook, Google, Twitter and so on.
Delete old accounts you don’t use
While you’re thinking about all the accounts you have out there, ask yourself why you even have them. Are you still using that matchmaking website, five years after your marriage? No, I didn’t think so. Delete that account! Have you fallen out of the habit of posting on that one goofy celebrity website you loved 10 years ago? Delete that account too!
That way, when random websites are compromised, you don’t have to ask yourself whether you’re at risk.
…including Yahoo
If your Yahoo account was hacked and you never use it, consider deleting it. Here’s our guide to deleting your Yahoo account and moving to Google.
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