For a long time, despite the use of various spam filters, suspicious messages from blackmailers can occasionally be observed in email inboxes. They claim to have allegedly hacked the email account’s passwords or taken control of the computer, which allows them to publish photos or other data. According to the sender, the only way to prevent this is by transferring money in the form of cryptocurrencies (usually Bitcoin) to the wallet address provided in the message.
Hi there!
I am a professional hacker and have successfully managed to hack your operating system. Currently, I have gained full access to your account.
In addition, I was secretly monitoring all your activities and watching you for several months. The thing is, your computer was infected with harmful spyware because you visited a website with adult content previously.
Let me explain what that entails. Thanks to Trojan viruses, I can gain complete access to your computer or any other device that you own. This means I can see absolutely everything on your screen and switch on the camera and microphone at any point in time without your permission.
In addition, I can access and view your confidential information, including your emails and chat messages.
You might wonder why your antivirus hasn't detected my malware. I’m using harmful software that is driver-based, which refreshes its signatures every 4 hours, so your antivirus can’t detect its presence.
I have made a video compilation. On the left side, it shows scenes of you masturbating, and on the right side, the video you were watching at that moment.
All I need to do is share this video with all your email contacts and messenger contacts. I can also make your emails and chat history public.
I believe you want to avoid this from happening. Here’s what you need to do: transfer the Bitcoin equivalent of $790 to my Bitcoin account (it’s a simple process you can look up online if you’re unsure how to do it).
Here is my Bitcoin wallet: 14MRXnsQhQ7LQSfKPMsESdJsEPFDyMCmMg
Once the payment is made, I will delete the videos and disappear from your life forever. Please ensure the transfer is completed within 50 hours (2 days). I will receive a notification as soon as you open this email, and the countdown will start.
Trust me, I am careful, calculated, and I never make mistakes. If I find out you shared this message with anyone, I will immediately make your private videos public.
Good luck!
There are many variations of such messages, and similarities can often be observed. Frequently, you can spot spelling errors, an attempt at blackmail, and encouragement to transfer Bitcoins to the provided cryptocurrency wallet.
The received messages, despite the sender’s claims, who provides detailed information about how they allegedly took control of the inbox or computer, are fake and should not cause concern. It is an old, yet cunning, attempt to extort money through blackmail.
By sending the aforementioned messages, the senders are looking for naive individuals, and by using blackmail, they attempt to extort money from them.
It’s possible that there are still naive people who decide to pay, as spammers keep trying to send these emails. Therefore, one can assume that this business of fake emails is indeed profitable.
However, it’s important not to be among those naive individuals. It’s worth considering whether the received messages are truly genuine or fake. In most cases, they are false. It’s important to remember that anyone can write such an email. There are ways to spoof another email address. In this article, we presented methods that show how to easily analyze and distinguish legitimate messages from spoofed emails.
How to Stay Safe Online?
To ensure online safety, it’s important to follow a few key guidelines:
- Use strong passwords and change them regularly.
- Avoid visiting suspicious and potentially dangerous websites.
- Do not click on links sent by strangers (or even friends) in emails or through popular social media platforms such as Messenger or WhatsApp.
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