More and more people in Pakistan and around the world are now facing the problem of email account hacks. Cybersecurity experts warn that this can be very risky because if someone breaks into your email, they can easily get into your other online accounts too, like your bank apps, shopping websites, and social media profiles.
According to Asad Mehmood, a cybersecurity specialist based in Lahore, an email account is the main door to a person’s digital life. If hackers manage to enter, they can steal important information and even trick friends or family into sharing money or private details without realising it.
To help people fix this issue, experts suggest a simple step-by-step plan. First, as soon as someone thinks their email is hacked, they should change the password immediately. The new password should be strong and unique, not the same as any old password. Second, it is very important to sign out of the email account on all devices through the security settings because hackers can stay logged in even after the password is changed.
Next, people should check if auto-forwarding is turned on. Hackers sometimes use this trick to keep receiving emails secretly. It should be removed if it’s there. They should also look at their email filters or rules to see if any unknown filters were created to hide emails—these should be deleted too.
Another important step is to inform friends and family if they got fake emails from the hacked account. This helps stop the hacker from fooling others. It is also wise to change the passwords of any other accounts linked to the hacked email, especially if they had the same password.
In Pakistan, the Federal Investigation Agency says digital crimes are rising fast, especially in big cities like Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad. Many people still use the same password for different sites and forget to turn on extra security steps like two-factor authentication, which makes things easy for hackers.
To stay protected, experts advise using different strong passwords for each account, enabling two-factor authentication, keeping recovery phone numbers and emails updated, and checking account activity regularly to catch anything suspicious early.
Taking these steps can help people recover quickly if their email is hacked and avoid bigger problems later. In today’s world, keeping email accounts safe is more important than ever.
