Personal data leak: what you need to know

Today, cyber attacks are becoming more frequent. It does not happen a week without being heard talking in the news of a website or an application that has been the victim of a data leak. These attacks are severe and have a double edge, since they exhibit not only the personal information of thousands of users, but also have dramatic consequences for the companies that are the targets.

What is a data breach and where do they come from?

A data simply matches information. This can be relative to a company, its staff, its customers, its users, etc. The cumulation of this information is now indispensable for the proper functioning of an organization, and what is its size. The data is a real gold mine and, in fact, extremely coveted, hence the exponential number of attacks aimed at stepping them. These are designated are the name of Data Breach or Data Leaks. Once the data is stolen, it is considered compromised.

The origin of the leaks or theft, there are computer experts, hackers, pirates, as soon as they detect a fault in the protection of personal data system, then it will rush to steal information present. They can then choose to broadcast them on the net, to resell them, or use them for various actions of type phishing. Knowing that it is personal information that is not supposed to be known to all, we understand all the severity of this kind of attack.

In general, when there is a data loss, the website or company that is a victim must notify customers by email, explaining facts and giving the procedure to avoid incurring the Damage due to the attack, such as changing its identifiers, monitor your bank accounts, etc. If the email is received and read, perfect. However if it lands in spam or unwanted as it is sometimes the case, the user will not be able to protect themselves.

How to know if your email has been compromised?

The Captain Verify Mail Tester allows you to simply and quickly the necessary checks. For this, fill in your email address in the field provided for this purpose.

If nothing is indicated, it is still imperative to remain cautious. Here are some tips to protect you: avoid using the same identifiers (email address and password) on the different websites. Change your passwords regularly.

If your email is identified as a compromise in a data leak, it is time to worry. You must change the password immediately and activate two-factor authentication!

Check if your email has been compromised in a data leak

What risks to you and how to better protect you?

Using the same password for most sites is a very common mistake. The best is to use a password manager.

Regarding fraudulent emails, always beware of messages that may seem suspect, even if they appear to come from a reliable source. Among the basic instructions; Never click directly on a link or attachment contained in an email. Also remember to watch if there are any mistakes of grammar or spelling in the text, or to check in detail the email address of the sender. The slightest little letter of difference can sometimes be a sign of an attempt at phishing.

Finally, remember that to protect your personal data online, the best way remains to minimize the type and number of shared information, especially on social media platforms.