The concept of being hacked is incredibly scary, and paying someone to fix things for you after you've been hacked, or dealing with the repercussions of your being hacked can be quite expensive, not to mention stress inducing. But in order to stop that from happening, we first need to know how these types of hacks happen in the first place so that we can do our best to avoid them.
Your social media accounts are a treasure trove for hackers. They carry all types of valuable data for a cybercriminal to harvest and commit financial and identity crimes. Hackers can also use your hacked social media accounts to deceive your contacts into divulging sensitive information like banking or credit card data. They can just hack Twitter passwords and get all their desired information.
But how do hackers hack social media accounts like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok, with all the security measures in place? Here are some methods cybercriminals use.
Man in the Middle Hacks
A Man in the Middle (MITM) attack is when a hacker places themselves between two parties, modifying communication for their own benefit. While you may believe that you're communicating with your web application or a friend, you're actually exchanging data with the attacker.
Hackers can use hacking tools to commit these attacks and intercept communications between software. They can also breach unsecured WiFi networks or create fake WiFi networks to employ MITM hack.
DNS Cache Poisoning
DNS cache is a temporary database on your computer that stores the IP addresses of websites. Instead of looking up an IP address on a DNS Server, your computer uses its DNS record for faster access. DNS cache poisoning is when hackers inject fake entries with incorrect IP addresses to take you to malicious websites. For example, you may end up on a fake Facebook page and share your login credentials with a gang of hackers.
Phishing and Smishing
Phishing emails are fake emails that trick you into helping a threat actor. Scammers may send you an urgent email claiming your social media account was hacked, with a link to a fraudulent social media page designed to capture your usernames and passwords. Some phishing emails also carry dangerous attachments carrying malware.
Smishing is like phishing, but the scam occurs over text messages. Hackers may send a link to a fake social media page on your phone and use social engineering to entice you. For example, you may randomly receive a fake security message, supposedly from Facebook, claiming someone tried to breach your account. This message will also carry a malicious link to a spoofed social media page.
Malware
Your computer or mobile device may get malware from a malicious email, text message, application, website, or download that helps hackers hack your social media accounts. Malware like Trojans, spyware, stalkerware, and keyloggers are the most common weapons of attack. With such malicious software, a hacker can read the usernames and passwords of your accounts.
Brute Force Attack
A hacker uses software to try countless password combinations in a brute force attack. Short passwords that contain common words, phrases, or dates are more vulnerable to such hacking techniques.
The Dark Web
If you use the same or similar passwords for all your accounts, from social media, banking, and email to that online forum you rarely visit, then your password could end up on the Dark Web for sale if any one of the accounts were breached.
These are just some of the tricks hackers use to break into social media accounts. Good password management, anti-malware scans, and awareness of phishing attacks can secure your login credentials.