being monitored

E

elizc

New Member
Hi,
I posted this on yahoo answers but thought I should post it here, an actual computer forum, just to make sure (I'm a paranoid person)..

I'm afraid my ex-boyfriend might be monitoring my hotmail account. I've changed my password to a [very] strong one he couldn't guess, but I'm afraid he might have some hacking program that could easily work it out, as he's quite good with computers. Do those types of programs actually exist? Am I worrying over nothing? I don't want to make a new email address, but I feel like I have no privacy.
 
He could possibly have a brute force password hacker.

But I wouldn't worry to much, if you know any languages he doesn't, put the password in that language (I know Latin, so as you can imagine few people know my password)

Also, make sure your security question is not one he knows, or he could change your password.
 
Hotmail is crapmail to begin with. Even Microsoft now has some intentions of dumping it all together. One way to insure no one else has access to your personal email is simply to scrub the current account entirely and go with a totally different free online email provider like gmail, inbox, fastmail.fm where no spam is allowed, etc.

Some accounts but not necessarily free allow for encrypted passwords as another means of tightening security as well as regularly cleaning out your IE history and not allowing user name/password information to be automatically stored locally on your system there.
 
Hmm.. =(
well, my password's similar to this: aJK12w!c (obviously that's just an example)
and hotmail has a lockout policy after a certain about of incorrect password guesses.
so, maybe it's safe...
 
unless he has a keylogger installed on your system. This is where it gets tricky. You may need to capture whatever processes are running on your system, and block all internet access from your computer to troubleshoot it.

How smart is your ex?

Does he know computers?

Are they the jealous/stalker type?

I mean it does take a bit of knowledge to set those things up, so if they are completely computer morons I wouldn't worry too much about it.
 
Yea, tlkarkin has a point. If he is a complete 'where the power button on at?' with computers, he wouldn't know how to find a clean Keylogger and set it up. If you are still paranoid about the key logger tracing your password, go onto another computer, make a text file (with your password in it), copy it to a flash drive, and then copy the file onto your comp, and just copy / paste the pass everytime you need to use it.

Or you can look into a program called a 'key scrambler'.
 
I'm not worried about keyloggers (I haven't d/l anything from him or received anything from him that could install one). also, you can get rid of them by reformatting.. (idk how hard that is, so I haven't).
but just to clarify, I don't really need to worry about brute force hacking programs, do I? my ex is intelligent, and he knows a fair bit about computers... but I don't know if he'd have advanced enough computer knowledge to find and install a good one, it can't be that easy. if it's a big process, then I doubt he would.
 
It is a big process. You should be clean. If you are still worried, go ahead and post a HiJack this log, (check in the security section of this site), it will show all the current processes.

He wouldn't plan something so time consuming unless you bit his d*** or something. ;)
 
- make another email account on another computer (that he hasn't used).
- email to your current account with the time and date when you're going to bomb/burn his house down. oh, don't forget the word "castrate."
- if the cops come to get you or show up at that time or if he goes into hiding..... or goes on the offense and gets you first then he's monitoring you. if nothing then you're fine

the other and more civil metod would be changing the password after eliminating all traces of malwares on your computer via a format or the like as mentioned.
 
as I've already made clear, I'm not worried about keyloggers/other malware. I've already done hijack this scans, etc.
the only way he'd find my password would be if he did some kind of brute force attack on my email account, which I've found is technically possible, but difficult, and unlikely.
so, I think this topic's resolved..
edit: but thnx for everyone's help.
 
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Or he could reset your password if he knows enough personal information about you, ie the Sarah Palin hack method. Actually, that is just kind of social/reverse engineer hack, so it is more like a Mitnick hack, but I am digressing so back on subject.

I think you may need a tin foil hat over more security. If your ex doesn't seem like the stalking type and there is very little possibility that he has the knowledge to pull such a thing off, and then on top of all of that you have already ran through possible malicious files, then I would say that most likely you are OK.

This is one thing I like about owning an using a Mac. Most people don't know Unix so they wouldn't know where to begin on how to do such a thing, and same thing goes for Linux. With Windows all you have to do is download a program and run it and you root the machine. So, I understand your concern but to me I would say case closed until further, if any evidence shows otherwise.
 
UNIX is old school that's why. So is Linux. But the advantage Linux sees is being an open source OS where it can see a degree of transformation over a period of time.
 
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