Blackmailed Online

THE PILGRIM

THE PILGRIM

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Somebody recovered a password that I have used on several non critical sites.
And they are demanding $3,000 in Bitcoin or they will send my porn site experiences to my Friends, Mother - Father Both Passed, Boss ain't got one, fellow workers, none I know of.
In the past I have looked at sites which most certainly can be classified as Porn. But not lately, never did it that much ever.
These folks are Threatening to make my life a living hell!
We already got Corona! Bring it on!
Anybody else get one of these?
 
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It's pretty easy to use security questions and social media information to hack email accounts. Like Sarah Palin had happen. I don't use correct information for security answers.

However, blackmailers will not be bought off... they'll be back with another scam. The best thing would be to turn the criminals in.
 
THE PILGRIM said:
Somebody recovered a password that I have used on several non critical sites.
And they are demanding $3,000 in Bitcoin or they will send my porn site experiences to my Friends, Mother - Father Both Passed, Boss ain't got one, fellow workers, none I know of.
In the past I have looked at sites which most certainly can be classified as Porn. But not lately, never did it that much ever.
These folks are Threatening to make my life a living hell!
We already got Corona! Bring it on!
Anybody else get one of these?
Click to expand...

Yep, I have received 3 of them on separate email accounts. The sniffed a password I used years ago on Gallery of Guns and nowhere else. The password hasn't been valid for 2-3 years and has been changed several times since then.

Don't take these guys seriously; they are phishing and looking for easy marks. The worst thing you can do is respond to them in any way.

I use Mailwasher so I can see what's on the server before it comes down to my computer. This email never got in the front door. This morning I set up rules on the server to block these guys. Now Mailwasher won't even see them - nor will I.
 
Nope

If you pay it once, they usually come back for more. Thats a pattern with blackmailers. Consider signing up for a VPN service. Then nobody should know where you've been online. Perhaps a fellow poster can enlighten us on VPN?
 
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I've had the same email. Don't respond, change your password(s) and block the sender.

If you are not using a password manager, you should be. I use one called Sticky Password. It has too many features, I don't use most (just turn 'em off), but it does a great job managing my passwords. The free version works great.

Here are some examples of what my passwords now look like:

!vQ*0rPG9nT3ipRV^hd5
AEmd2G~n3Tyi%D5!Iex#
4HCut^Jx2WS&9Zgz~Tdf

If you know how to copy/paste it's a snap to use. You can back everything up on a thumb drive for safe keeping.
 
They are looking for an easy mark. Back when the Ashley Madison hack took place, I started getting e-mails saying that I had been on the site and they were going to send the history of me cheating to my wife if I didn't pay up. I had never been on the site. They were gambling that maybe I had been on the site and that they could extract something from me. Just ignored them and they finally stopped.
 
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Yeah, we got one that says "I know your anniversary and the sites where you use it as a password" along with the same litany of threats about porn site usage etc. (I haven't been on a porn site in 30 years).
Right into the round file with all the other Your eBay Account is locked and Your PayPal Account Has Been Frozen phishing spam messages.
 
Well, Pilgrim, (said with my best John Wayne accent), you are not alone. I have received the same communication with the same threats and requests for 'shall we say a gift of bitcoin'. I have been getting one each week for several (3?) weeks, and they are exactly the same, except the sender 'appears' to be different. Actually it caught my attention because it addressed me as an old password I had used in the past. Really made me wonder if someone breached my security at first.
What to do? NOTHING. Do not respond, or you will be confirming that you exist and give half of a hoot. I delete the messages now without even opening them. One thing I did do was increase the level of security that my OS offers, just in case there is an attempt to get in to my computer. As for the threats, the perps are taking a shot in the dark, and some of their supposed observations may apply to a large percentage of the male population. I'm in a similar boat as you with no parents, no boss, etc., etc. so, they really loose some credibility as far as knowing what they are talking about.
Just make sure your system is as secure as you are comfortable with and do not under any circumstance respond and let them know that you are alive.
 
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federali said:
Consider signing up for a VPN service. Then nobody should know where you've been online. Perhaps a fellow poster can enlighten us on VPN?
Click to expand...

A VPN hides from your Internet provider what sites you visit while using the VPN; it hides from the website you visit what your IP address is, and it encrypts the data going between you and whatever website you're visiting. That makes VPN's good to use when using public wifi networks such as at hotels and airports so that everything you send is encrypted, and to keep the provider, such as a hotel chain, from building a database on your browsing habits. I've used a VPN many times to access this web site when using certain public wifi networks that otherwise block access to it because the site is firearms-related. That's about all a VPN does. They do nothing to protect passwords, as passwords are usually obtained via phishing the owner or hacking the website that the password is for.
 
dmn57 said:
Yep, got a few of these recently. Used a password that wasn't associated with much of anything I still use. Wonder if anyone really falls for this and pays out.
Click to expand...

I'm sure some pay out.... otherwise these scammers wouldn't waste the time doing it. Throw enough spitballs at the wall, and sooner or later one will stick.
 
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