Best Practices to Protect Against an Email Hack

In today’s digital age, protecting your email from hackers is more crucial than ever. Cyber threats are constantly evolving, and an email hack can lead to significant personal and financial damage. Our email account is linked to Banking, College or university accounts, Registration or memberships, Shopping apps, websites, Online surfing, and social media platforms. Almost everything is connected to our email. That’s why email is the most suspicious thing for hackers.

This article outlines the best practices to safeguard your email account, including tips on creating strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, and recognizing phishing attempts. Stay one step ahead of cybercriminals and secure your email with these essential strategies.

An email address is the ideal target for cyberattacks. You can secure your email account from being hacked in two ways.

• Method 1: Email Security Settings
• Method 2: Best Practices for Email Security

Method 1: Change Email Security Settings

Email provides options to receive alerts for unusual sign-in attempts, unrecognized devices, or changes to your account settings. Add these security settings to your email account to protect your account.

1. Turn On 2-Step Verification

Initially, the 2-step verification keeps your account safe and secure. Even if a hacker knows your email credentials, they will not be able to log in to your account.

You will be asked for permission to log in to your email from another device and that’s how it works. Therefore, always keep 2-step verification turned ON for added security.

Learn How to Enable Two-Factor Authentication on an Android Device?

2. Manage Login Devices

The ‘Manage Login Devices’ feature in emails like in Gmail allows you to view and remove devices that have accessed your account. If you log in to a new device with your email ID and forget to log out, you can use this feature to remove unknown devices at any time.

Therefore, check for unknown or unused devices where you are logged in and disconnect them now. This prevents unauthorized access and keeps your account secure from potential hackers.

3. Check Third-party Logins

Similarly, the third-party app login. It lets you check and remove access to applications linked to your email account. Removing access to suspicious apps prevents them from accessing your data and keeps your account safe from cyber attacks.

4. Add Recover Phone and Email ID

In case you feel you can’t access your email account. Adding a recovery phone number and email helps secure your account by providing alternate ways to regain access if you’re locked out. This prevents hackers from permanently taking over your account.

5. Enhanced Safe Browsing

Enhanced Safe Browsing feature handles online cybercrimes single-handedly. It tracks your online activities and scans websites and downloads for potential threats. It warns you before visiting suspected phishing or malware sites that could compromise your account security.

Apart from these security settings, you have to follow these recommended best practices to keep hackers out of your email account.

Method 2: Best Practices for Email Security

1. Use Strong, Updated Passwords

Password is the gateway to enter your account. If your password is easily guessable, anyone can guess it. Thus, it is always advised to create a strong, unique password for your email account. It prevents hackers from guessing and gaining unauthorized access.

You must update passwords regularly to enhance security, once every 3-4 months. Never reuse your login password for other sites.

Use a password manager to create, store, and autofill strong, unique passwords for all accounts, so you don’t need to remember or reuse passwords, which enhances account security.

Try these 10 Best Android Password Manager Of 2024

2. Identify Fake & Scam Emails

You can easily identify Fake or spam emails by looking at the email address:

1. Check for strange or randomly generated email addresses, especially those with numbers or meaningless letter combinations.
2. Look for email addresses that don’t match the supposed sender’s name or organization.
3. Check for odd/misspelled domains; Legitimate companies don’t use those

These red flags in email addresses often reveal spam emails.

If you receive such an email like ‘rainway@mail.beehiiv.com’, ‘gisellefiji88@onet.eu’, etc. Do not respond! Instead, mark it as spam and report this email address. Reset your passwords, and report the incident to the authorities.

3. Don’t Click Unknown Links & Attachments

Don’t open emails with fascinating subjects from promotional ads and unknown sources, as they might be suspicious. If these emails contain links and attachments, don’t click on them.

Clicking unknown links and attachments risks your device to malware or phishing attacks. It can steal email login credentials or compromise account security. Avoid them to prevent potential email hacking.

4. Avoid Public Computer Usage

Avoid logging into email on public computers due to potential keyloggers or malware. It can steal your login credentials. Public computers are shared and insecure, increasing the risk of account compromise

Using your devices reduces this risk, as you have more control over their security measures and software installed.

5. Use Temp Email for Site Logins

Using a temporary email address for website logins helps reduce the risk of email hacking attacks on your primary account.

If those sites experience a data breach or are even hacked, only the temp email is exposed, preventing hackers from accessing your primary account. This enhances the overall security of your main email account.

Learn How To Create a Temporary Email Address?

6. Always Use VPN

You should always use a VPN (Virtual Private Network) because it encrypts your internet connection, preventing hackers from capturing your data and login credentials, especially on public networks.

Without a VPN, unsecured connections expose online activities and email logins to potential cybercriminal access.

Using a VPN adds an essential layer of security and privacy, protecting your email account and personal data from potential hacking attempts or surveillance.

Try these 10 Best Free VPN Services in 2024

7. Use Strong Antivirus

Reliable antivirus software can detect and remove malware that could compromise your account security, protecting you from potential hacking attempts.

Try these best Antiviruses for Secure Browsing!

8. Keep Devices Up To Date

Updating your operating systems regularly guarantees that you have access to the most recent security updates, which close holes for hackers from accessing your email accounts.

By following these best practices—using strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, and staying vigilant against phishing attempts—you can significantly reduce your risk of falling victim to cyber threats. In conclusion, you need to understand that if a hacker hacks your email account, it means they have gained access to your email credentials through online attacks.

Regularly updating your security measures and staying informed about the latest threats will help keep your email and personal information safe. Implement these strategies now to ensure your email account remains secure and protected.