I see you like P**n!!
I am sure a headline like that will get your attention. Well this is exactly the email we received into the office today. Thankfully into our spam filter.
Here is what the mail said (email and passwords sensored for privicy);
From the ‘’International hacker group’’ (fancy name) but I can assure you there is no company and of course they do not have what they claim. This email claimed to be coming from an existing account but if you have a look at the email address it was sent from, it was totally fake.
What these ''People'' do is they get passwords and user emails from sites like LinkedIn and Facebook and use that information to give themselves credibility. Just to note that a lot of details like this were taken from Facebook just last week. We are expecting to see this type of attempt increase over the next few weeks.
They need people receiving these emails not to look further than the surface and just pay the money before videos are spread to family and friends and avoid the embarrassment that this would abviously cause.
Things to keep in mind
If you get an email you are not expecting, check the senders actual email address and make sure it is valid
If you get an email like this and you are still using the listed password, then change it ASAP
Put on your spam filters so this goes into your spam folder rather than your inbox.
Put different passwords for each site, otherwise once they get access once they will have access to everything
Not all emails look like this so be vigilant and if in doubt throw it out.
Finally use this link to see if you have been compromised in the past https://haveibeenpwned.com
If you are even in doubt contact your IT department or your IT provider.
Please do not pay any online Ransom before speaking to a qualified IT professional. I would rather pay a professional to tell me the truth than to give it to scammers that focus on vulnerable people and will continue to do so if they are allowed.
If your even in doubt if a mail is real simply email me on john@stability.ie and I will let you know.