Electronics

[catter70]

I received an email saying that they have hacked my computer. Other than not open it and delete it, is there anything else I need to do?

[jackthebear]

delete

block 

[CAcableGirl2]

@catter70  I would delete the email and be sure to empty your trash folder and spam folder too.

[gardenman]

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@catter70 wrote:

I received an email saying that they have hacked my computer. Other than not open it and delete it, is there anything else I need to do?

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It never hurts to run a scan of your existing security software, and maybe do a free run of Malwarebytes, just to be sure nothing's snuck in. Also, check for Window's updates. Modern operating systems are pretty much bulletproof these days, and when they find a vulnerability they patch them quickly, but some people turn off the updates and leave themselves vulnerable. If everything's good after that you're home free.

Ransomware is the new malware of choice for many hackers. There are ways around it, but if you follow safe computing practices (good security software, keep your software updated, don't click on mystery links, avoid the wild, wild west of the dark web, etc.) you shouldn't ever have to worry about it.

[kare29]

Change your Password.

A few years ago my email provider, Xfinity notified me a different device tried to sign into my email account. It was suggested that I change my password which I did do.  

[Scooby Doo]

@catter70 Let me warn you from my experience this summer.  I also received an email telling me that my computer had been hacked.  I deleted it because I had Norton on it and thought it was safe.  I was very naive.  I definitely was hacked.  If you have done any financial transactions on your computer, immediately call your bank and freeze your account.  Then unplug your computer.  Use a different computer and change every password AND login.  If you have a router, change the password on that.

I tell you this because whoever hacked my computer locked me out of my bank account and transferred ten thousand dollars out before I was aware of it.  

Run a full scan on your computer immediately to see if there is a Trojan virus.  If so, you'll need to take it to a computer hospital to have it fixed.

[morganjen]

Two years ago, that happened to me, too. I thought it was a scam and dismissed it, but my computer had slowly started dying during the same timeframe the e-mail said they hacked it. My hard drive completely crashed and I had to get another computer.

[Still Raining]

Another thing to consider is that someone has your email.  It is good to keep several emails for various purposes and it will be easier to close one.

If it was me, I close/move what is associated with the email and close it.

[glb613]

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@morganjen wrote:

Two years ago, that happened to me, too. I thought it was a scam and dismissed it, but my computer had slowly started dying during the same timeframe the e-mail said they hacked it. My hard drive completely crashed and I had to get another computer.

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It's too bad you didn't write here before you bought a new computer.  There are ways to restore your computer back to factory conditions and start over.  Unless your computer was old and needed to be updated, there is no reason to buy new because of malware. 

[gardenman]

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@glb613 wrote:

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@morganjen wrote:

Two years ago, that happened to me, too. I thought it was a scam and dismissed it, but my computer had slowly started dying during the same timeframe the e-mail said they hacked it. My hard drive completely crashed and I had to get another computer.

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It's too bad you didn't write here before you bought a new computer.  There are ways to restore your computer back to factory conditions and start over.  Unless your computer was old and needed to be updated, there is no reason to buy new because of malware. 

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Agreed. In the worst-case scenario, you just wipe (or replace) the hard drive, reinstall the operating system and you're good to go. You'd lose everything on the old computer, but you'd lose everything when you replaced it anyway. And that's the worst-case scenario. You can typically just find, isolate and remove the threat without having to wipe the whole hard drive. 

If your computer is old and obsolete and you're looking for a reason to get a new one, then fine, replace it, but it's never necessary to replace the whole computer because of a virus or malware. Any virus will be contained in the hard drive. Erasing the drive or replacing the drive makes it go away. I've never heard of anyone infecting the BIOS with a virus or malware, but if they did then flashing the BIOS would remove it. Those are the only two places where things are held permanently in a computer. Clean those up and your computer is back healthy again.