Another malicious attack on the internet - this time affecting Yahoo Mail users. By now it's a pattern and online consumers should be aware and take action to protect one's online identity. It doesn't take much for hackers to gain access to a platform and have thousands of people's information in seconds, and right now, nothing is stopping them. On Thursday, Yahoo, the second largest email service [after Google], discovered a vindictive effort to collect access to Yahoo Mail accounts. Yahoo is expressing they have no proof that account information was obtained directly from their own systems, claiming they most likely were collected from a third-party database. Yahoo Mail users were immediately notified to change their passwords and Yahoo implemented a second sign-in verification, promoting users to take yet another step in order to access their mail. Yahoo is also strongly suggesting what many others have been this year - to keep your passwords safe and secure with multiple numbers, letters, and symbols, and make separate passwords for different accounts. This is especially true if you share the same login information across platforms. I know, it's a pain to remember different logins and different user names. But believe me, it is even more of a pain to deal with hacked accounts and even more significant, identity theft. (Take it from me personally, the Adobe hack hit me hard). Of course, all Yahoo users should be on high attention for spammy links sent from someone in your address book. If it seems fishy, don't click it. It only takes a minute to shoot an email to the sender to check if he/she really sent the message. This way, you find out if it is spam while simultaneously notifying the sender if he/she has been hacked. Hacking has unfortunately become part of our every day vocabulary. So much of our lives is now dependent on the Internet, and this is the price we pay. The best actions you can take are to make smart online choices, take preventative measures, and always stay alert and aware. Also, find a mail service provider and a hosting company that you trust. WSD provides both secure email hosting and secure web hosting. Visit our Hosting Services page to find out more.
