5 Signs Your Email Has Been Hacked — And How To Get Rid Off

Mani Shankar
6 min readAug 14, 2020
Photo by Luther Bottrill on Unsplash

1. changed password.

Possibly the most apparent— and most panic-inducing — sign that your account may be hacked is that you can no longer log in with the same password. First, be sure you’re using the correct password (a password manager like LastPass ensures you’re using the right one). If login problems continue, initiate the password recovery process. If the recovery methods don’t work (either because the hackers have rerouted the recovery information or you don’t have access to your secondary recovery email or device) then your only option may be to get in touch with customer service.

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2. Strange emails in your sent folder.

Not all attackers will completely takeover your account and lock you out. Sometimes, they just want to commandeer your account, either to send spam or to gather more information about you while trying to hide the activity from you.

Check your sent folder to see if there are any messages you don’t remember sending, especially mass emails to your contacts. It’s possible that an attacker will have deleted any sent messages to cover their tracks, though, so it isn’t always possible to tell if something was sent without your knowledge

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3. Unexpected password reset emails.

Keep an eye out for password reset emails that you don’t remember requesting. An attacker may be trying to find out which banks, shopping sites, and other services you use. Be on the lookout for suspicious emails or calls claiming to be from your bank and asking for more information, like PIN codes or passwords.

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4. Complaints from contacts.

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Mani Shankar

Computer Engineer by profession, passionate about writing fictional stories,technical articles, blogging etc.