I was Hacked by a Scammer

I haven't been online much this week and the reason is that I was hacked by a scammer who wanted my data. It's a real insult, and a pain for those of us who are honest in this world. 

Have you been hacked? How did it feel? Did you manage to get your data back?

I feel violated in more ways than I thought possible. It feels like a personal attack, and an insult. My data is mine, and only I should choose what happens to it. 

Why do scammers exist where they don't belong? What is wrong with them? Where are their morals? I know this sounds old, but I want to know how they sleep at night knowing that their viruses hurt and spread misery for honest people.

I know being hacked is not personal, and it happens to good people all the time, but when it happens to you - well, you feel the pain.

My computer contains all my writing and personal stuff. I use my computer for my day job as well, and all my communication with family and friends. I have personal photos of my kids saved on my drive. 

Your personal computer is way more than just a tool. Often, it's our livelihood too. It's no wonder that we feel the anger when someone tries to destroy everything you've built in one click.

I didn't download anything.

I didn't click anything.

I didn't send anything.

I didn't visit any suspicious website.

I didn't enter a code.

I got a pop up screen that wouldn't go away. I clicked on the little corner x and voila, it was a disguise. It was meant to look innocent but it was a button that enabled a download Trojan horse virus to download onto my computer.

I was not happy. 

In that moment, everything I had open, froze. A screen came up with a large horse telling me I had been hacked and to click on a link. Yeah, right. I wasn't falling for that one again. 

I shut everything down and restarted. 

Nope. That horse was there to stay and have fun with all my files that I had spent years working on.

I'm lucky, and I have someone close to me that is awesome with technology and I'm now fixed, but it wasn't an easy solve even for a professional in the field.

I'm now back to not trusting anything to do with tech again. As they say, "once bitten, twice as shy."

The next time you get an ad pop up that stops you in mid-write, hesitate before you click anything. It might just be something nasty. 

Squash it before it's too late and it takes over your computer.

Be vigilant.

My name is Lizzy. I'm a trauma survivor, a wife, a mom, a teacher and an author.

If you like reading my posts, then please follow me.

For more about me: www.elizabethwoodsauthor.com

Support your fellow writer:

https://ko-fi.com/elizabe69245484

The Blank Page Conundrum

https://medium.com/restless-quills/the-blank-page-conundrum-58bb64607038

Mental Health Matters

https://medium.com/illumination/mental-health-matters-0d145057cf5d

What Do You Overcome Every Day?

https://medium.com/illumination/what-do-you-overcome-every-day-25fd8f06d362

What is Your Inspiration?

https://medium.com/activated-thinker/what-is-your-inspiration-14bb2fdc57db

How Do You Manage Your Stress Levels?

https://medium.com/activated-thinker/how-do-you-manage-your-stress-477b7a66153d