The Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office warned residents and smartphone users about an investigation into the possible hacking of Snapchat accounts.
They say that the perpetrators attempt to coerce victims into providing personal photographs, or otherwise access them remotely through the hacked account.
They offered the following advice:
– Delete any sensitive photos from their Snapchat accounts – especially their “for my eyes only folder”
– Turn on 2 factor authentication on ALL social media accounts.
– Do not give anyone their phone number – to friends or anyone who contacts them via social media. One way the hacker is getting into accounts is by hacking into accounts of users who are not using 2 factor authentication and then messaging friends of the user and asking them for their phone number. The hacker may then “daisy-chain” their way through our community of kids. A kid thinks they’re sharing their phone number with a friend, but they are actually giving their info to a hacker who has broken into an account of someone they know.
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