Emergency Plan: What To Do If You’ve Been Hacked
Been Hacked? Here’s What To Do
Emma McGowan with Avast News writes:
It can feel embarrassing to be the victim of a crime but, remember: It’s so, so common.
Your family has a plan in case of a fire. You might have one for earthquakes, or other natural disasters. And, these days, it’s a good idea to also have a plan for what you’re going to do if you’ve been hacked.
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Because, believe it or not, it’s much more likely that you or a loved one will be the victim of a data breach, phishing attack, romance scam, or one of the many other cyber crimes that we colloquially call “hacks” these days. According to the FBI’s 2021 Internet Crime Report, there were nearly 850,000 filed complaints of “hacks” in 2021, for a total of nearly $7 billion lost. In comparison, there were about 338,000 home structure fires that same year.
Yikes! With that in mind, we wanted to provide you with a short and sweet emergency plan for what to do if you (or a loved one) have been hacked. Print it out, pin it next to your computer, place it on the fridge, or file it away somewhere handy to ensure that if you’re a victim of a cyber crime, you know what to do.
- Change your passwords.
- Enable two-factor authentication.
- Call your bank.
- Tell friends and family.
- Report the incident to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
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