Passwords. We need them for almost everything nowadays. Entering our phones, our computers, social media, and almost any website that involves a credit card purchase or includes personal details. Every time we start a new account on a password-protected site or system, we’re prompted to create a password.
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Eavesdropping. It used to be something we did to people who shared the same space with us before text messages was a thing. We would put our ear against the door and desperately tried to pick up any parts we could of the secret conversation in the next room. Nowadays, we can have a conversation with a friend about the new Kanye West album, and then as soon as we go into Facebook, what do you know? An ad for that Yeezus album comes up.
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With the huge increase of people working from home due to Covid-19, millions of home laptops and desktops are laying around open, and with Zoom calls demanding our cameras to be open, webcam hacking even is a hot commodity for hackers these days. Webcam hacking, or ‘camfecting’ (camera + infecting), is a hacking technique that enables the hacker to remotely take control over another person’s webcam, without that person’s knowledge or permission.
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Sextortion – a portmanteau of the words sex and extortion – is a broad term used to describe the practice of exploiting a person (usually in an attempt to get money) by threatening to reveal evidence of their sexual activity, often explicit photos or videos. Sextortion is not a new concept, and we can find evidence of the term being used as early as the 1950s. But the modern definition of sextortion is widely understood to be linked with exploitation through technology – email scams, webcam hacks, stolen photos and videos, etc. It is seen as a growing problem internationally, and it is another weapon that cybercriminals use to target us.
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It’s clear to everyone that we are living in unprecedented times. Almost overnight, many of us have had to reassess how we work, socialize, do our groceries, and just about every other activity. Covid-19, and the social and economic upheaval many of us are feeling, has acted as a beacon to hackers. We can fight them by being vigilant against these threats – now more than ever.
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