Image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay
Being hacked is not a thing to wish for. It puts not only you and people your correspond with at risk. Apart from the traditional malfunctioning of some application or the OS of your laptop in general, this can also lead to damaging of your laptop. And if that’s the case you might need to sell laptop and buy a new one. But the question is how do these hackers gain access to our devices such as laptops? Having this knowledge will put you right on track to prevent attacks from hackers.
Below are ways by which your laptop can get hacked:
Phishing
This is the act or practice of sending messages via emails or other electronic means of communication pretending to be from reputable sources such as your bank, insurance company, etc. to bring individuals to reveal private information, such as passwords and credit card numbers. By clicking on the link sent through these emails and further releasing your information, you give access to hackers to hack their way through your bank using your credit card information or other personal businesses using the information gotten from you. Therefore, to avoid phishing scrutinize every email before clicking on it or replying
Malware
A Malware is a software that is designed to cause damage to computer systems, servers, networks, etc. by attacking the system and lifting data available on the system. also, they come in different forms of which the most common are; Trojan horses, virus, spyware, adware, ransomware, worms, etc. this creates an avenue for hackers to gain access to your laptop.
Weak passwords
Using short passwords or passwords that are regarded as weak and easy to know or guess by third parties are quite dangerous and can be the passage for hackers to gain access to your laptop.
Social engineering
These are the days of social media and other related mediums for connecting people and it is also a hotspot for hackers as they use it to gather information given by unsuspecting individuals to gain access to their devices.
Insecure network
Using insecure networks such as public WIFI’s can make your laptop vulnerable to attack from hackers and also lead to the theft of data and information.
USB connection
This is another method hackers use to gain direct access to your computer. USB ports serve a variety of purposes on a laptop one of which is the sharing of data. Hackers can gain access to laptops by use of USB flash drives, USB cords connected to mobile phones, etc. installing malicious programs in the process.
Outdated software
Having outdated software and applications or operating systems on your laptop makes your laptop vulnerable to hacker attacks as they might not be updated to their latest versions which are likely inaccessible to hackers.
Downloading from unverified sources or dangerous sites
Visiting and downloading files from unknown sources can give hackers access to your laptop as they might have clowned the file or application or get attached to the downloaded file, therefore, giving hackers access.
Clicking on false ads
This is probably one of the most current models of attacks hackers use to gain access to laptops and other electronic devices such as mobile phones.
In all these ways lies the preventive measures one can follow to prevent hackers from gaining access to laptops. The first on the list is to have strong and updated antivirus and upgrade your software regularly then scrutinize your emails before reply, do not share your personal information while using public WIFIs and also put passwords on your laptop’s hotspot. Password your personal Wi-Fi, download applications from reputable and verified sites, be sure you trust and you are aware of any USB device entering your laptop.
Finally, be sure you know who is having access to your computer and avoid sharing information personal information to random people and random sites as these would go a long way to prevent the shock of having your laptop hacked and a total loss of data and in some cases, money.
