I got hacked, beware of the tricks.

The issue of hacking lately has gotten to a whole new level in the world and it doesn't have to do with how smart you are because a silly mistake could rip you off everything you have worked for in life. Safety is one of the things why we keep our assets in banks and with the development in the finance world, digital wallets took over the world with the invention of cryptocurrency.

But unfortunately, the safety of our assets still lies in our hands despite confiding in the bank or having a digital wallet you can access. Something still baffles me because I don't know why people still fall victim to scam despite hearing what's happening around the world every day but I wouldn't blame everyone who fell victim to a scam because hackers have stepped up their games and they keep updating the way they operate every day.

Hacking has gotten to a stage where one click on a link can empty your wallet in a twinkle of an eye.

Earlier this year, my godmother was hacked and she lost everything in her wallet without knowing how it happened. The hacker left without a trace, you can imagine how it would make one feel to lose everything without doing anything wrong. Her experience made me understand that no one is above hacking but we just have to be extra careful.

In mid of June, my Instagram account got hacked. I wasn't aware until my elder brother called me that someone was chatting with him about an investment.

I immediately posted on Facebook, WhatsApp, and Noise.cash to inform my followers about the incident.

I thought I was safe until I got a notification from a friend that she has sent me 120,000 naira (close to $300) to the account I gave her. I was dumbfounded because I didn't know what was going on, she added that "she wasn't getting any response from me that was why she decided to reach on WhatsApp.

I denied having any connection with it but she didn't believe it, I was threatened by police but I didn't bother because my hands were very clean. I did my best trying to trace the names and accounts linked to the transaction, it ended without any positive results. Even the banks involved couldn't be of help and we knew that we couldn't recover a pinch of what was lost after the response they gave us.

After some time, I got two other calls from my friends having the same issues. They were both scammed $400 and the total money the hacker got from using my account was $700.

The scenario of my friends is quite different because the hacker took advantage of the trust they had in me.

But I kept wondering why they followed me so blindly, I am not surprised because millions of people around the world follow Elon Musk blindly and allow his ideas about things to affect the decision they make with their money.

It was a bad experience for me as well because I felt like their trust in me was betrayed even though I have nothing to do with it.

I haven't fallen victim to such a scam not because I am smart but for the fact that I follow some procedure that serves as a guide for me with my online engagement.

Tips to protect oneself from the reach of hackers:

1. Don't download the app you ain't sure of the sources: Hackers extract data with their malicious apps, the clone bank apps, company app just to steal your data. They end up using those stolen that to access your assets and they might be damaged beyond repair before you discover what's happening.

1. Be careful of what you invest in: Don't invest in anything you haven't made your research about, do not trust anyone's business idea irrespective of who they are because they might also be falling victim to scams and unknowingly involving you in it.

1. Save your data offline: Do you know that backing up your password with mail or other stuff online can be very dangerous? It means that access to your mail by a hacker means they can toggle with assets without leaving any traces.

1. Download a reliable digital wallet from an authorized store: this is very much related to the first point but it laid more emphasis on banks.

Using a digital wallet doesn't prevent you from a hacker, it even exposes you more. Be sure you are not downloading a clone wallet where your crypto assets can be stolen forever.

1. Beware of airdrops: we all know what airdrops are and we participate in them just to earn free coins unknown to us that we can be exposed to getting hacked by submitting our data through fake airdrops.

Be sure of airdrops and be sensitive about the information you give out online.

These little steps have been helpful and I am sure they can work for you as well and feel free to share more tips on how to protect yourself from hackers.

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