When browsing the Internet or using any online service, we share a large amount of data. That information sometimes ends up in the wrong hands. It can be used by a hacker to control our devices, steal passwords or even access third parties. In this article we are going to talk about what can happen if an attacker finds out where we live . We are going to explain what possibilities it has and what to do to avoid it.
A hacker can use the address
It is common for a hacker to use our email address or even social networks to scam us. You can launch Phishing attacks once you know this data, try to impersonate the identity or reach third parties through the contact list. But there is one piece of information that they can also find out and that is the physical address of our home. And yes, they can also use it against us.
First of all, how can a hacker know where we live? The truth is that there are multiple options and it is not very complicated. We can say that it is a fairly used data and that they can get to it due to some mistake that we make or a leak in some service that we use. These are the main causes:
- Make the address public
- Filtering on some page or service
- Copy of the DNI or any filtered document
Therefore, as you have seen, there are different reasons why they can find out the physical address of our home. That information, once they obtain it, can be used against us. A clear example is through blackmail or extortion . For example, contacting via email or social networks inventing a problem and writing our address to tell us that we must carry out some action. This can also be over the phone, for example by posing as the telephone or electricity company.
You could also use the address data to get to other information . They could use public databases to also find out our ID, for example. This could cause them to impersonate our identity.
In addition, you could get to send physical letters . A clear example is pretending to be a bank asking us for certain information to solve a problem. A Phishing attack, but more credible on the part of the victim when receiving a physical envelope to his address. They can create a card that looks legitimate.
How to be protected
So what can we do to be protected? It is always important to avoid exposing more data than necessary. For example, do not make your physical address, telephone number or personal data public through social networks, Internet forums or any place that third parties can access.
It is also important to review very well where we register and what applications we use. This can be key to not falling into the trap and that data such as the physical address can be exposed on the network. We should always register on platforms that are reliable and where there is no risk to our privacy.
On the other hand, it is advisable to have security programs . Hackers could spy on us through Trojans and spyware. This allows them to find out certain personal data, such as physical address. They could then use that information against us, so using a good antivirus can help eliminate the problem.
Likewise, having updated systems will help prevent many of these attacks. A cybercriminal could exploit a known bug that we have not fixed. For this reason, it is advisable to have the latest versions at all times.
In short, as you have seen, a hacker can use our physical address against us if they find out where we live. It is convenient to take certain measures and always maintain privacy when browsing.
