We live in a connected world where all our devices are connected to the internet. Be it mobile phones, laptops and TVs, lights and even our security camera. The camera on our devices makes it super convenient to communicate with anyone in the world as long as both are connected to the internet.
But all this convenience comes at a cost, someone a pretty huge one. So all you can do is be alert, keep yourself updated with the new technology, and perhaps keep reading Techtippr.
Several online publications warn you or scare you into thinking about how your laptops and mobile phones can easily be hacked. And this famous photo of Mark Zuckerberg having black tape over the laptop webcam.
Well, if a CEO of a multi-billion-dollar company is doing it, there must be a solid reason for it. But it doesn’t necessarily have to be cautious on his end so that the adult movie scammer doesn’t record is a webcam.
It is more of a, ‘why take the risk’ the guy is a super important person, and he might be bringing his laptop to super-secret meetings and doesn’t want the secrets to get out, hence the extra layer of security.
But, what does it is mean for the non-super important people?
We have to be aware of things, maybe we can also add a tape to cover the camera, but unless you are the co-founder of a multi-billion-dollar company, you’re good without it.
If you are only worried about some hacker recording your private moments via the webcam of the laptop or the front cam of your mobile, here are a few things you should be aware of.
How Scammers Blackmail You
Here’s a sample email I found in the Spam section of my Gmail. It has probably been sent in an email blast where it is sent to thousands of email addresses at once. Google is great at detecting such emails and putting them in the spam folder.
This is the email
I know love is one of your passwords on the day of hack..
Let’s get directly to the point.
Not one person has paid me to check about you.
You do not know me and you’re probably thinking why you are getting this email?
in fact, i actually placed a malware on the adult vids website, and you know what, you visited this site to experience fun (you know what i mean).
When you were viewing videos, your browser started out operating as a RDP having a key logger which provided me with accessibility to your display and webcam.
immediately after that, my malware obtained every one of your contacts from your Messenger, FB, as well as email account.
after that i created a double-screen video. 1st part shows the video you were viewing (you have a nice taste, omg), and 2nd part displays the recording of your cam, and its you.
The best solution would be to pay me $2742.
We are going to refer to it as a donation. in this situation, I most certainly will without delay remove your video.
My BTC address: 19ibjLmf2ze8HaGrgk5GP67tGML4KjQcCM
[case SeNSiTiVe, copy & paste it]
You could go on your life like this never happened and you will not ever hear back again from me.
You’ll make the payment via Bitcoin (if you do not know this, search ‘how to buy bitcoin’ in Google).
if you are planning on going to the law, surely, this email can not be traced back to me, because it’s hacked too.
I have taken care of my actions. i am not looking to ask you for a lot, i simply want to be paid.
if I do not receive the bitcoin;, i definitely will send out your video recording to all of your contacts, including friends and family, co-workers, and so on.
Nevertheless, if i do get paid, i will destroy the recording immediately.
If you need proof, reply with Yeah then I will send out your video recording to your 8 friends.
it’s a nonnegotiable offer and thus please don’t waste my time & yours by replying to this message.
Good thing it never made it to my Inbox. But even if it did, I would know it’s a bluff because I don’t go on the internet for such stuff. Even if I did, I would use the Incognito mode and be aware of anything that’s getting installed on my computer.
Also, this is a generic email, not addressed to me, not personalized, no proof, like a screengrab of the recording etc.
A scammer bet is on a tiny percentage of people who would fall for it. So, for example, If it is sent to 100,000 people, and only 1% see it, it’s still 1000 people, and even if only 0.1% fall for it, it would be 1 that 1 person who will pay $2742 via BTC, which is virtually untraceable.
The cost of sending emails in huge quantities is a lot but far less than the scammer will make if even 1 person falls for it. So it’s pretty lucrative for them to keep doing it.
Can Someone Install malware on your computer without your permission?
It does sound scary, but yes, they can. But it is not as straightforward as targeting your computer or mobile and injecting it with malware.
The security of laptops and mobile phones have improved over time, but it’s still foolproof, especially for laptops and android mobiles, where apps can be installed outside of the app store where the files are not verified. An app can pretend to be something else, but it could have malware on its back. But it still has to be installed.
On a mobile phone, you have to be attentive to what app you are using and what permissions the app asks you to allow.
The same goes for installing anything on your computer, Mac or PC.
