To the Editor:

In the past two weeks, my email was hacked. Bad. A concentrated and dedicated hack that included personal information about me from almost 20 years ago and also from recent information. And of course, family, friends, and even acquaintances responded.

It was only through my main email. Nothing else was compromised. But that is all it takes

I received urgent text inquiries first, then phone calls from concerned people, emails outside of the original message, and these communications continued for over a week and a half. They happened as people checked their spam files. They happened as people realized after responding to the original person behind the email, that this did not sound right. I would not be asking for money in the form of gift cards!

I am writing this to all of you to let you know what happens when we respond out of kindness and caring without first checking things that don’t seem right.

In this case, many people were affected and hurt. So sad for not only those of us directly impacted, but also for the persons behind the email. How can we help each other to see this?

In my case, the message was that I had broken a bone, and was in the hospital. People of course immediately responded to this. But what is really concerning is that this did happen to me many years ago, and some of my own words seemed to be used in the responses to people reaching out.

So after dealing with this in my life, I asked myself, “What can we do about this seemingly endless cycle of intrusion into our personal lives, and into our resources?”

This letter is my attempt to answer this question.

First. Although it is easy to respond when we see that someone needs our help, always check the real email behind the email. If it is different from your contact’s normal email, please delete the email and do not respond.

If you do respond, as soon as the person behind the fake email asks for money or resources to go towards money, or any identifying information from you — stop. Check it out immediately by contacting the person another way, or checking with other contacts that you know who may have connections with the person.

Second. If you have been the person hacked and your email is compromised, shut down your computer or laptop device, remove the device from the internet by disconnecting from any online service. This will not allow the invading persons to access your or others on your contact list.

You may need to go into your settings and unclick the choice to connect automatically to the next site. For instance, for my household, I have four possible connection internet access points. Un-click the choice to connect automatically on each one in settings.

Third. Contact others who can get the word out that you have been hacked. Let other groups you are a part of tell your contacts in that particular group that there is a hacker and your email, if they see it, is possibly spam and not to be responded to.

Finally, know that you may be dealing with The Hack for a while. It is not over in a few days. It may take more time.

I suggest you change all passwords on all accounts, including email, business, financial, shipping, and more. 

Use a different device and system to change these. For instance, I was most likely hacked on my laptop and Windows-based system. I went into my Apple devices and changed everything from there. A different form of encryption may help to give some independence. 

I hope this letter is helpful. You may ask: What did this event cost me and what have I gained, other than a few concerns:

— I purchased two new computers to make sure my personal and business connections were separate.

— I closed my personal office for (only) a day to reset up all of the online systems that I use for my business.

— Several of my family and friends sent resources to the bogus entity thinking they were helping me. I feel horrible about that.

— Even more people called, texted or emailed my personal sites to see what was going on and could they help me. (All obviously upset and worried about me that I was in the hospital.) I am so sorry about that too.

— I lost faith in the systems around me, including UPS, online secure ordering, AOL accounts, and whoever I need to trust.

— My personal health, which had been challenged by stress, was eroded further. I actually had surgery during that weekend and was supposed to be resting, but then needed to deal with this. I am continuing to deal with the physical effects of this episode.

— My own family, including my children and parents, were impacted by thinking I had been hurt. So sad.

My personal gains:

— So many people love me and will help me if I need it.

— I have an awesome and amazing team of talented people supporting my personal and professional endeavors.

— I am a human being, and will learn and be resilient even when a massive system tries to steal from me.

— We are all able to help each other.

There are people who are “manning” the emails behind the email. One of the things I am doing is to pray for them. We are all one, and they need to know that their actions affect others. I am starting to send a message to any fake emails that I find in my inbox:

Hello dear person behind the email. 

I am keeping you in my constant prayers. 

What you are doing hurts people. Even though you may not realize that. 

I hope you are doing well. I will be thinking of you and sending you all good energy. 

+Peace+

In the meantime, be smart. 

Check out something if it doesn’t seem right. 

Don’t send money or resources for anything before checking with others for a second opinion. 

If you do compromise your systems, change your passwords immediately.

And pray for or send good thoughts to the persons doing this. They must need our help.

Thank you for listening.

Debra Trees

Albany