You have been hacked email scam

Perhaps, you are one of many people who got the email with subject “You have been hacked”. This is a scam, similar to the “this account has been hacked! Change all your passwords!” I mentioned a few weeks ago.

The “You have been hacked” is newly-reported phishing message that threaten to send “video showing how to satisfy yourself” if you do not pay a ransom within 24 ho‌u‌rs.

Lots of people had received these emails from someone claiming to have hacked their computer and email box. The scammers threatened to send “video showing how to satisfy yourself” — to all of their email and social networking contacts unless they paid a ransom ($600 to bitcoin address 17viZFKw1Xn8WQcpC6GwLqjzLTcE7qBJ93). The wording varies to some extent, but the email looks something like this:

You have been hacked

Hello,

I have looked at you for several months.
In fact, you have been infected with malicious software through an adult site that you visited.
If you are not familiar with this, I will explain it.
The Trojan virus gives me complete access and control over a computer or other device.
That means I can see everything on the screen and turn on the camera and microphone, but you're not aware of this.
Thus, I also got access to all your contacts.
Why the antivirus program did not detect malicious code?
Answer: I have a Trojan driver, I update their signatures every four hours so your antivirus is silent.
I made a video showing how to satisfy yourself on the left half of the screen, and in the right half you see the video you watched.
With a click of a button, I can send this video to all your email and social networking contacts.
To prevent this, transfer the amount of $600 to my bitcoin address (if you do not know how, google "Buy Bitcoin").
Bitcoin Address: 17viZFKw1Xn8WQcpC6GwLqjzLTcE7qBJ93
As soon as the payment is received, I will remove the video and you will never hear me again.
I give you 24 hours to pay.
Do not worry, I have a notification that reads this letter, and the timer works when you read this letter.
Submitting complaints to somewhere is not meaningful because this email can not be traced as my bitcoin address.
I make no mistakes.
If I find that you have submitted a report or shared this message with someone else, the video will be distributed immediately.
Sincerely!

Should you pay? The best advice is: Don’t pay the ransom.

The “You have been hacked” email is a phishing spam. It is based on the fact that:

• the email has been sent to countless people like any other widespread email spam
• the fraudulent message have the “spam” style grammar
• computer security professionals has determined that these emails attempts to force users into paying the requested ransom and that no actual video exists

What to do when you receive the “You have been hacked” email scam

If you have received the “You have been hacked” email scam, just ignore the scammers’ empty threats. The best way to deal with the scam email is follow some easy steps listed below!

• Do not panic.
• Do not pay the ransom.
• Do not respond to the email spam.
• Mark the email as junk (SPAM mail)
• Avoid clicking links in email.
• Cover over your computer’s cam and add a micblock to the microphone port.
• Report any scams like these to the FBI’s (Crime Complaint Center).
• Scan your computer for malware
• Install an anti-phishing software
• If you receive an email that is similar but not the same as the example above, make sure you remove any personal info in this message, then post it as comment on this article.

How to scan your PC for any malware

We recommend using the MalwareBytes Free that are fully clean your machine of malware. This free tool is an advanced malware removal application created by (c) Malwarebytes lab. This program uses the world’s most popular anti-malware technology. It is able to help you delete viruses, potentially unwanted apps, malware, adware, toolbars, ransomware and other security threats from your personal computer for free.

MalwareBytes Anti-Malware can be downloaded from the following link. Save it on your Desktop.

Malwarebytes Anti-malware
326384 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020

Once the downloading process is done, close all apps and windows on your PC. Double-click the install file named mb3-setup. If the “User Account Control” prompt pops up as shown below, click the “Yes” button.

It will open the “Setup wizard” that will help you install MalwareBytes Free on your personal computer. Follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.

Once setup is finished successfully, click Finish button. MalwareBytes Anti-Malware (MBAM) will automatically start and you can see its main screen as shown in the following example.

Now click the “Scan Now” button . MalwareBytes Anti Malware (MBAM) tool will begin scanning the whole PC to find out malware and other kinds of potential threats. Depending on your PC system, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. While the MalwareBytes Anti Malware is scanning, you can see number of objects it has identified either as being malware.

Once the scanning is complete, you will be shown the list of all found threats on your PC system. All found threats will be marked. You can remove them all by simply click “Quarantine Selected” button. The MalwareBytes will remove malware and add threats to the Quarantine. Once disinfection is finished, you may be prompted to reboot the computer.

We recommend you look at the following video, which completely explains the process of using the MalwareBytes AntiMalware to remove adware, hijacker infection and other malware.

How to use AdBlocker to protect yourself from phishing

Use ad blocking application such as AdGuard in order to stop unwanted ads, phishing web-sites, malvertisements, pop-ups and online trackers, avoid having to install harmful and adware browser plug-ins and add-ons which affect your machine performance and impact your computer security. Browse the Internet anonymously and stay safe online!

1. Click the following link to download the latest version of AdGuard for Microsoft Windows. Save it on your Microsoft Windows desktop.
   
   

   Adguard download
   26627 downloads
   Version: 6.4
   Author: © Adguard
   Category: Security tools
   Update: November 15, 2018
   
2. When the download is finished, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
3. Once the install is finished, click “Skip” to close the installation program and use the default settings, or press “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial which will assist you get to know AdGuard better.
4. In most cases, the default settings are enough and you do not need to change anything. Each time, when you run your computer, AdGuard will run automatically and stop unwanted ads, block phishing web-sites as well as other malicious or misleading web sites. For an overview of all the features of the application, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the icon called AdGuard, that is located on your desktop.