The expert listed the signs of phone and computer hacking

Hacking a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or personal computer is dangerous because attackers gain access to sensitive data, accounts, and finances. On October 24, the head of the group for work with educational organizations at Cyberprotect, information security expert Sarkis Shmavonian, told Izvestia about which markers to pay attention to and what to do in case of suspected penetration.

"Most people don't understand logs and processes, and they shouldn't. It is enough to keep track of simple markers," the expert noted.

According to Shmavonian, the device began to discharge quickly, although the user does not play games or actively watch videos. There may be malware or a miner running in the background. You should also be alarmed by the spontaneous activation of functions that have been disabled, such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, the sudden appearance of pop-up windows or applications that no one has opened.

The gadget may start to "slow down" for no apparent reason or overheat even with a small number of windows open, and unfamiliar shortcuts or programs appear on the desktop that the user did not install exactly. Another sign is suspicious activity in accounts: unexpected login notifications, password change requests, and confirmation of transactions that the person did not perform.

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If hacking is suspected, the expert advises to act according to a simple algorithm. The first step is to disconnect the device from the Internet by turning off Wi—Fi and mobile data in order to interrupt the attacker's connection with the malware. The second step is a full antivirus scan. Shmavonian recommends using Russian programs with a commercial license: free versions often have limitations in functionality, and domestic solutions respond promptly to local threats.

The third step is to remove the threat if the antivirus finds it. If the symptoms persist, reset the device to factory settings, and then change all passwords from mail, social networks, online banking, and other services. You also need to check account activity and, if necessary, log out of the profile on all devices.

The expert reminded about the useful habits that help save data. One of them is multi—factor authentication. The other is backup.

"Once a month, copy important photos, documents, and contacts to an external hard drive, flash drive, or separate SSD. In the event of an attack using a ransomware program or a serious hack, only a backup copy will save the data," said Shmavonian.

On October 18, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia in Moscow issued recommendations on digital hygiene to protect against remote fraud. The agency called for minimizing communication with unknown people and monitoring speech: intruders can record and transform voice and video, so you should not say "yes", "I confirm", "I agree" and give your last name, first name and patronymic. To protect accounts, the police advised setting up two-factor authentication, installing antivirus software and disabling automatic downloading of media files in messengers.