<i></i> <i></i> <i></i> 0<p>The exponential increase in the use of technology has made life decidedly easier for us, but it has also made us more exposed to dangers like cyber-attacks. Cyber-attacks happen fairly frequently and to people from all sorts of technological backgrounds. To avoid being the victim of having important data being stolen right off your computer, you need to pay constant attention to monitor any changes that might be occurring on your computer system.</p> <p>Most of us don’t even know when the security of our computer has been compromised and continue putting sensitive data on them. Here are a few telltale signs that can help you figure out if your system has been hacked so that you can move onto cleaning and fixing the system rather than risk your security by continuing to use it.</p> <h2>8. Fake antivirus messages</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1028.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>Antivirus software can help protect your computer, but that does not mean that downloading an antivirus means that you are completely immune to attacks. A quick and easy way to spot issues in your system is to see how the antivirus is faring.</p> <p>If it gets mysteriously turned off without you doing anything, external forces might be manipulating your system. Moreover, another sign that gives away damage to your computer is fake antivirus messages that keep popping up. These fake antivirus messages, sometimes for software you have not even downloaded yet, are a sign of severe internal damage.</p> <p>They conduct a fake scan on your system and tell you that your system has serious damage and links you to another website. Upon clicking that link and reaching the mentioned website, you will be asked for your credit card number, and your bank details will be exploited.</p> <h2>7. Unwanted browser toolbars</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1030.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>If your computer has several toolbars that you don’t remember downloading, you might have a problem. Having unwanted toolbars on your system that too of doubtful origin, often means that an external force accessed your system and your privacy is at risk.</p> <p>These toolbars have names that indicate that they are there to help you, but in reality, they are there just to syphon important information off your computer. Make sure that all the toolbars on your computer are from reliable vendors to ensure the safety of your computer.</p> <h2>6. Redirected Internet searches</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1031.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>The internet survives on the number of hits and clicks. Most websites make their money by having people come to their page to visit. Owing to this fact, many hackers make a fortune by redirecting your browser to a website where they want you to go.</p> <p>This means that instead of going where you want, your clicks get redirected to another location meaning your clicks will appear somewhere other than where you wanted to go. Not only are you maliciously redirected to somewhere where you don’t want to be, but the redirected website often contains even more malicious data that can further infect your system by clicking.</p> <p>Luckily, this type of malware can be easily detected. All you need to is type a few common words into your system, like cat or puppy, and see if the same results pop up on the search engine. If your computer is infected, the search engine will show similar website links for both the searches and the searches will bear no resemblance to the actual query.</p> <h2>5. Frequent random popups</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1032.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>While getting a virus is a definite inconvenience, this sign is an even bigger hassle to deal with. Pop-ups are the name given to irrelevant and spam like windows opening up when you click something on a web page. If you are getting completely random pop-ups on your browser, that too from websites you normally don’t even visit, you should know that the security of your system has been breached.</p> <p>Websites, both legitimate and illegal find ways to sneak into your browser, no matter how many times you disable pop-ups.</p> <h2>4. Your friends receive invitations on social media from you that you didn’t send</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1033.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>All of us have been a victim to this at one time or another. Sometimes our friends keep getting incessant game requests, or invitations to download an app, or maybe even friend requests that you have never actually sent out.</p> <p>Some of them are confused as to why you would invite them to these things, while others are annoyed at being constantly approached. Either way, the situation gets very awkward, to say the least.</p> <p>Sometimes, you might even be asked why you are sending them friend requests when you two are already connected on social media, only to realize that the account that is approaching them while looks like yours, is most definitely not your own.</p> <p>In both the cases, a hacker has gained so much control of your system that he is now handling your social media websites. He might create a bogus page based on your own personal information, or he might control the one you already have.</p> <h2>3. Your online password isn’t working</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1034.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>So many times we keep typing in what we know to be our passwords, but our accounts refuse to log in. Even if we know for sure that the password we are typing in is correct, our account stays logged out. This might be a sign you are hacked. At first, wait for 10-30 minutes and try to log in again because some websites experience technical difficulties that cause their websites to be temporarily out of action. However, if your account remains locked, you can be sure that your account has been hacked and the password has been changed to keep you out.</p> <p>You might argue that accounts are supposed to be secure, hence a scenario like this is highly unlikely. However, how this happens is that the victim of this attack responded to an email that while looked authentic, was actually just phish mail.</p> <p>This phish mail claimed to be from the service, and after obtaining the necessary information, the victim was effectively locked out of his account. After the victim is successfully out of the way, his account can be used to steal money or services until he takes action to shut his account down or regain control of it.</p> <h2>2. Unexpected software installs</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1035.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>The software installs that you have not set in motion bu are still downloading onto your system, are a huge giveaway that your computer has most likely been hacked. Most viruses nowadays are worms or Trojans. This means that they survive on your computer, by installing themselves as legitimate programs. This makes you prone to two different types of attacks.</p> <p>You might accidentally download them from the internet yourself thinking they are a useful software, or you might ignore their presence on your system assuming that they are there as part of the system software. This software often attach themselves to other legitimate software so make sure to pay close attention to whatever you are downloading onto your system.</p> <h2>1. Your mouse moves on its own and makes correct selections</h2> <img src="https://cdnone.netlify.com/db/2017/12/word-image-1036.jpeg"/>Shutterstock <p>If your mouse keeps pointing itself to random places and making proper selections, you might be suffering from an external threat. Mouse pointers can move on their own because of hardware issues, but a correct selection means that malicious humans are involved in trying to compromise the security of your computer.</p> <p>Once inside, the hackers can manipulate all your data by transferring money or even impersonating you.</p> <i></i>