IMPORTANT: Googlemail/GMail Can Be Hacked

Terry Kyle · #1 (**permalink**) 14-09-2008, 10:13

A warning may have been posted here while I was away but if if you have this type of e-mail account:

In the last week, a lot of people with GMail or Googlemail e-mail accounts have had their accounts broken into.

If you use GMail/Googlemail - especially on a wi-fi network - you need to take these steps immediately:

[a] Sign in to GMail.
[b] Click Settings at the top of any GMail page.
[c] At the bottom of the page, set 'Browser Connection' to 'Always use https' (a secure SSL connection)
[d] Click ‘Save Changes’
[e] Reload GMail

This will protect your GMail account.

Indizine · #2 (**permalink**) 14-09-2008, 10:18

I use Gmail for all my email accounts into one, though thankfully I have never experienced any problems despite using wifi daily.

Jeewhizz · #3 (**permalink**) 15-09-2008, 07:53

The 'hack' will affect every site that you login with without a https connection, so it's not limited to just GMail

Gamesman · #4 (**permalink**) 15-09-2008, 11:57

I found that it stopped my mobile from being able to accept Gmail with the https enabled.

i think there is way round it though.

.

Arleigh · #5 (**permalink**) 17-09-2008, 12:31

Great post. I really find it informative. Thanks for sharing.

24x7 Exchange · #6 (**permalink**) 19-09-2008, 17:07

Always try and use the https alternative where it is available. Also, if you use Vista and use public wifi hotspots, always select the public location option so that others on the wifi network have no visibility of your machine.

And for this very reason, do not use the same password for everything. If you are using the same password for your simple applications such as forums, and webmail as for your financial applications such as ebay, paypal, online banking etc, you might want to rethink this.