What if..

..your account got hacked

A dumb password is a giveaway, accounts hacked, password security, hacking computer, computer lock, account security, unlock, padlock, black padlock

Photo from photoXpress

@Momentmattters in Twitter has been hacked recently. The most that hackers did was tweet some bar soaps they’re selling. They do it repetitively and I know it’s annoying so I took care of it.

There is nearly infinite possible combination of characters to be used as a password, but some people have sheer luck in guessing your password. The prior month as well, politician Mitt Romney’s private email was hacked by just guessing his favorite pet’s name. We should respond to the security questions with utter seriousness because that’s one way people get through your account.

It’s worth the time to think of a strong password, isn’t it? These passwords should be loads more perplexing than SplashData’s list of worst passwords on the internet. Topping it all was “password” as password, which I would love to buy that person a dictionary because clearly he needs more vocabulary. Next to it was “123456” – how lazy can you be? And then there are those who are just fixated to their nursery days by making “12345678” as their password. But, I won’t recommend an overly inert password like “j7%4s(=z@,a+6qz” because it’s also a hassle if you keep forgetting your password.

At the least of it, we have invested time in our accounts; but there are also valuable data at risk. When Linkedin was hacked, the hackers may control the users’s accounts and contacts. Allegedly, millions of data are shed when Sony’s PlayStation Network was hacked in 2011. It halted PlayStation Network’s operation for a month. And for most people, they can be hospitalized when they found out their daily updates are all gone.

I guess there’s money in hacking? Or does it only feed the pride of the geeks that they can breach the multinationals? I don’t know what they’ll do with the account of other people but mess it up; and that would only mean something if you knew the person you’re hacking. However, screwing up an enemy’s account is a great revenge venture.

What if your account got hacked (wordpress, facebook, email, any account), what will be risked?