Mar 25, 2020 If you think your Apple ID is compromised, use these steps to gain control of it and review your account information: Sign in to your Apple ID account page.If you can't sign in or you receive a message that the account is locked when you try to sign in, try to reset or unlock your account. Change your Apple ID password and choose a strong password. We’ve detected 19,491,055,067 stolen passwords that have been taken as a part of a security breach or other types of illegal online activity. See if yours is one of them. Just enter the email address you use to log in to Facebook or LinkedIn or any other on-line site where you have an account and we will check it against a database of hacked websites and stolen log-in details.
Has your router been hacked? You may not have a single clue on how to answer this question, fortunately for you, there is an easy, fast and free way to find out.
Why would you care to check if you’re running a router that has fallen prey to hackers? Because routers aren’t immune to criminals and the device transfers a lot of sensitive data. Most people don’t pay attention to their routers, nonetheless care to check if its been hacked or even know how, the router is just that little black box right? No, its much more. The router is what all your devices connect too, where all your traffic is sent through, where everything related to your internet directs through.
A compromised router is a huge security risk. One of cybercriminals favorite methods of router hacking is DNS hijacking, which is known to cause a variety of problems. It often leads to malicious advertising and pointing real domains towards phishing sites aimed at stealing your banking, email and social network credentials. Which criminals can later abuse for profit, scams and to infect more.
Want to find out if your router has been hijacked? Drum roll please… the router checker tool is here to save the day.
Jun 28, 2019 If you’re wondering whether your computer has been hacked, we have some bad news and some good news. First the bad news: if you suspect you’re infected, then you’re probably right (check with this free vulnerability scanning tool).The amount of new malware on the internet – particularly the kind intended to infect home computers and small businesses – is growing rapidly. To run a test against your router to see if it has been hacked, click the big colorful start now in the middle of the webpage. Router checker will then run a test to see if DNS requests sent from your device are being routed properly or if they’re being hijacked by a third-party. Aug 22, 2016 1 # Can I Tell If My Mac Has Been Hacked. To determine if your mac has been already hacked by hackers you have to know if things. First of all, you've to spot some sign of possible hacking. You'll have to consider whether anything out of the usual is happening on your notebook. You know how your computer runs better than anyone else. How to check if you've been hacked If you worry that your account has been hacked, there is a simple way to check. Go to the arrow in the upper right-hand corner of your Facebook page and click on it.
Security experts over at F-Secure just announced their latest project dubbed Router Checker, a tool that can tell you if your routers DNS has been hijacked. In one click you can find if your router has been hacked, no downloads or installs required, just click start now, let the test run and you’re done. Current versions of Internet Explorer, FireFox, Chrome, Safari and Opera are all supported by the router checking webpage.
To run a test against your router to see if it has been hacked, click the big colorful start now in the middle of the webpage. Router checker will then run a test to see if DNS requests sent from your device are being routed properly or if they’re being hijacked by a third-party.
Running the test on our desktop using our default DNS, Google DNS and a VPN router all passed with no issues. Running the test on our smartphone and tablet under the same conditions including LTE returned the same results, safe and secure. Though some users have reported running into issues with their smartphone, where F-Secure notes the configured servers are not widely used, commonly occurs with ISP’s. Most have noted that seeing a yellow warning tab does not mean to panic, instead, proceed with caution til you accurately asses the risk.
My router has been hacked, what do I do?
If your router does appear to be hacked, you need to asses the situation immediately and treat it as a severe attack. First you will want to go ahead and dig into the “details of your DNS server’s IP address” portion of the tool. To do so, click the large plus sign which should open an additional panel with lots of details. Don’t worry, this is common when working with DNS tools, lots of numbers and locations.
While using this tool we were running Private Internet Access VPN on our router, appearing in the United States on a California server. The following details were returned:
My Mac Has Been Hacked
Looking over your details, if on a basic home router with no VPN or third-party DNS servers setup, the details should spit out your ISP name along with your designated IP address. If the DNS servers are routing elsewhere, such as other states or countries, your router is likely hacked. To fix the issue, you will need to start by logging in to the routers administrator panel. If you do not know how to do this on your current setup, it might be worth calling your ISP and asking for assistance to gain access to the router, or you can follow the guide below.
Fixing the Hijacked Router
If you’re using a Windows machine click the start button and type CMD then hit enter. A small black command prompt should appear, where you will then type the words “ipconfig” without the quotes obviously. From there the command prompt should bring up a long list of items. Scroll up until you see “Default Gateway” where you should see a 198.168.xx.x address or similar. Copy the address and paste it into your browser.
If you’re on Mac OS X click the Apple icon on the top left corner. From there click “System Preferences”. Next, click “Network”. This should open a small panel, make sure on the left side you are on Ethernet or whatever wireless card you’re using and look for the router section. It should contain a set of numbers that you can paste into your browser.
Paste the numbers into your browser, from there it should bring a popup asking for your username and password credentials. Now if you’re using a third-party router, now would be a good time to go grab the old dusty box it came in off the shelf and see if it has any username and password credentials or setup guides. If you’re using a stock ISP router the credentials could be anything from your last name on the ISP account to the password being a phone number, last name, router brand, credentials you setup or something out of the blue. The credentials could also be “admin” for both the username and password. Again, you may need to contact your ISP here or do a quick online search for “what are my [brand name]router login credentials.”
Once you’re inside the routers admin panel, your panel may differ from ours, so bare will us. Check for anything labeled, network, DNS, tools or basic. Depending on your router, while navigating through the panels, keep an eye out for the word DNS. Now in our Tomato router panel, our DNS settings were under Basic > Network. From there we had clear access to 3 DNS servers we could choose to setup. Seeing as we wanted to use the default VPN DNS, we chose to leave our panels on the default settings. If your router is hacked, you may find a third-party DNS occupying the space you did not allow. Remove the numbers and either leave the panel blank or whatever the default is for the router, likely 0.0.0.0 or similar.
Now click save and power cycle (reset) the router by either unplugging it or resetting it from the admin panel itself. Give it a few minutes depending on your router and run the test once again. The test should come up clean. If not, your computer’s DNS could be hijacked too.
The router is clean, but the test still says I’m infected?
Is My Mac Hacked
In the rare event that you cleaned your router off and the test still claims your infected, it could be an issue stemming directly from the PC itself.
On a Windows you will need to navigate to your DNS settings. On Windows 7 and earlier machines you can click the start button and navigate to “Control Panel” on the upper right side. Under the “Network and Internet” tab click “View network status and tasks”. From there you can click “Change adapter settings”. Find your wifi card or Ethernet switch, click on it, then right click and hit properties. Scroll down to IPv4 where you will again click properties. You will then want to assure the DNS is set to “Obtain DNS server address automatically” or whatever desired DNS you would like. You can use Google DNS at 8.8.8.8 if you would like.
On a Mac, you will navigate to the same panel you did earlier, click the Apple logo on the top left, System Preferences > Network. Below the router area there should be a “DNS Server” section in which you can edit accordingly.
You may want to clear your browser cache or reset your computer before running the test again. Once that’s done, the test should return the reassuring words “no issues were found.” If not, then the system may be compromised with malware, where you may wish to scan for malware and viruses with tools like Malwarebytes, SpyBot, SuperAntiSpyware and Eset Online Scanner.
After you run the malware and virus cleanup you can once again clear your browser cache, reset your system and try once again. If the issue persists, try it on a number of devices. If the issue continues to persist, your router may directly be infected with malware, meaning you need to contact your ISP, grab a new one from the store or flash it with open source firmware.
Conclusion
F-Secure’s router checker tool is not a definite way to ensure your router hasn’t been hacked, it simply checks if the DNS has changed and if the servers are malicious or unknown. There are many ways routers can be hacked, and the only definite way to ensure your router is not hacked is to sniff the traffic, or alternatively flash the router with open source firmware. But for 99% of regular internet users, F-Secure’s router checker should be a good starter test and leave you with peace of mind.
Router checker is a nice tool to bookmark and pull up every once and a while or while on the go at hotspots or other locations. You might want to pop open the tool next time you’re at a coffee shop, or airport and find out the networks health.
Photo via Asim18/Wikipedia [CC BY 3.0]
Updated 11:32 AM EST Feb 19, 2020
Smart hackers don’t get caught. They break into your device, steal everything they can, and finish without a trace. Sometimes they leave a trail of destruction in their wake – malware, weird ads, confused relatives, and even a drained bank account or stolen identity.
It’s pretty easy for hackers to do their job. Most people are ambivalent, but you don’t have to be. Click here for 5 security mistakes you’re probably making right now.
Computers, phones, routers, and down to the innocent webcam are vulnerable to cyber-criminals. So what if they’ve already broken in, yet you don’t even know they’re there? Here are clear-cut signs that you've been hacked.
1. Your gadget suddenly slows down
One of the side-effects of malicious software is a slow gadget. Software gets sluggish, or constantly freezes, or even crashes. If you start noticing some of these symptoms, your gadget may very well be infected with viruses, trojans or worms.
Malicious software usually runs in the background, secretly eating up your gadget's resources while it's active.
Here are tools you can use to pinpoint those nasty applications. If an application that you don't recognize is hogging your computer resources, it's likely a virus.
PC: Use Task Manager
There are a few ways to see what processes your computer is running. The easiest is to bring up Windows' built-in Task Manager. Just use the keyboard shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + ESC and go to the Processes tab.
Put simply, the Task Manager lists all of your computer’s current tasks and how much processing power they’re using, measured in Central Processing Units (CPUs). Open up Task Manager and check the CPU and memory columns for each process.
You might find one process is using 100% — or close to it — of your CPU. Open up the program associated with the process and see what it's doing. Restart the task and monitor it, but this program might be the culprit.
Click here to learn powerful Windows Task Manager secrets for diagnosing and repairing slow computers.
The Tuxera NTFS driver allows you to open, read, edit, copy, move or delete Windows files on your Mac. Even so, you may want to remove Tuxera NTFS from your Mac for any reason. In this post, we want to share with you two ways to uninstall Tuxera NTFS on Mac. Contents: Uninstall Tuxera manually. Uninstall Tuxera automatically. Hack for tuxera mac. Microsoft NTFS for Mac by Tuxera brings reliable read-write compatibility for all NTFS-formatted USB drives on your Mac. Try free for 15 days.
Mac: Use Activity Monitor
The Mac equivalent to Task Manager is its built-in Activity Monitor. The quickest way to access the Activity Monitor is by using Spotlight Search.
Click the magnifying glass on the right side of the menu bar at the top of your screen, or press Command + Spacebar to open a Spotlight window and start typing the first few letters to auto-complete 'Activity Monitor.' Just press Enter to access the tool.
Similar to Window's Task Manager, Mac's Activity Monitor displays a list of all your open processes with tabs for CPU, Threads, Idle Wake Ups and Network usage.
Learn these three troubleshooting Mac shortcuts the pros use.
If this happens when you are on an iPhone, try a soft reset by holding the power and the home button until it reboots with the Apple logo. This step can clear out frozen apps that can be hogging your memory.
2. You’re using way more data than usual
Every Internet provider has tools that can keep track of your monthly bandwidth consumption. Look at Data Usage Meter or Data Monitor, depending on your provider. Compare the amount of data used from the prior months, and if you notice sudden spikes in your data activity even though you haven't changed your patterns, then chances are you are infected.
For example, adware infected gadgets usually perform unsolicited clicks in the background to generate profit for cybercriminals. These stealthy tactics use up bandwidth and the unauthorized data they consume should be fairly easy to spot.
Do you want to save on your data consumption? Here are 5 steps to cut your data usage in half.
More Komando: How to find everything Microsoft knows about you
3. Videos suddenly buffer and web pages take forever to load
When a streaming video suddenly freezes, and your device appears to be “thinking,” this is called buffering. This annoyance often happens, especially if you play a lot of videos or your Wi-Fi connection is weak. If it’s happening a lot, or videos fail to play at all, you’re wise to suspect neighbors are piggy-backing on your connection. Click here for steps on how to check for Wi-Fi thieves.
Then again, malware can also slow down your Internet traffic by DNS hijacking. In short, hackers can redirect your Internet traffic to unsafe servers instead of the secure servers. This will not only slow down your browsing experience, it's also a serious security risk. For example, if your router's DNS settings have been hijacked, each time you visit your online bank's website, you'll be redirected to a phishing website instead.
To check your router's DNS settings, you can use an online tool like F-Secure Router. For more security, consider changing your DNS server to one with advanced hijacking protection like CloudFlare or Quad9.
Do you want to make your router hack-proof? Click here for more tips.
More: 6 ways to speed up slow Wi-Fi
4. Programs and apps start crashing
Now, here is a clear sign that your system has been infected. If your antivirus software and task manager are either crashing or disabled, a nasty virus has likely taken hold of your critical system files.
You may not be able to click on once-reliable apps. In the worst case scenario, ransomware may prevent you from opening favorite files.
You can try and fix the problem by booting your gadget in Safe Mode. With Safe Mode, your computer will be running with just the bare essentials. This way, you can safely delete and uninstall any programs and files that you can't during normal operation.
Windows:
On Windows, search for System Configuration then open it >> select Boot tab then tick off Safe Boot >>check Minimal (this is enough for most cases) >> click on OK to confirm >> Restart your computer.
Click here for detailed steps on how to boot into Windows Safe Mode.
macOS:
On a Mac, press and hold down the Shift key while restarting your computer. Keep holding the key through the Apple logo and release when you see the login screen.
Android:
Android also has its own version of Safe Mode but there are different ways to activate it, depending on your phone model. Click here to learn how.
iOS:
Stock iOS doesn't have a Safe Mode but you can try a soft reset to fix most issues. To do this, press and hold both your iPhone's Home button and the Sleep button at the same time, wait for it to restart then let go of the buttons when the Apple logo is displayed.
The iPhone X doesn't have a Home button so the process is a bit different. Press and quickly release the volume up button, press and quickly release the volume down button then press and hold the side button and release when the Apple logo appears.
5. You start seeing pop-up ads
Malware can also add bookmarks that you don't want, website shortcuts to your home screen that you didn't create, and spammy messages that entice you to click through. Apart from slowing down your gadget and eating away at your data, these intrusive notifications can also install more malware on your system.
Criminals can also use DNS hijacking to modify the ads that you see while browsing. Instead of the regular ads that you should be getting, they can be replaced with inappropriate or malicious ones.
On Windows, clean out adware with SpyBot Search & Destroy. On a Mac, use Malwarebytes for Mac.
6. Your gadget suddenly restarts
Automatic restarts are part of normal computer life. Software updates and new application installs can prompt you to reboot your computer. Your system will warn you when these happen, and you can delay or postpone them.
Yet sudden restarts are a different story. With Windows 10, there's a free malware detection and extraction program called Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool.
I recommend a Full Scan with this tool to verify that your computer is updated with the latest malware definitions.
7. Unexplained online activity
Hackers covet your usernames and passwords. These details, coupled with social engineering tricks, can gain access to your banking accounts, your social media profiles, and your online services.
Keep an eye on your email's 'sent' folder and on your social network posts. If you notice emails and posts that you don't remember sending or posting, it's likely that you have been hacked.
Constantly check your accounts for unauthorized activity including movies on your Netflix profile that you don't remember streaming, mystery purchases that you haven't made, songs on your Spotify list that you didn't listen to, credit card charges that came from nowhere.
What other tech tips will help you?
Call my national radio show and click here to find it on your local radio station. You can listen to the Kim Komando Show on your phone, tablet or computer. From buying advice to digital life issues, click here for my free podcasts.
Updated 11:32 AM EST Feb 19, 2020