Diary of a Hacked Account

Comrades, April was a hard month for many members of our clan!  Several of us, including myself, became victims of insidious account thieves!  The tools to protect yourself are out there, and it is up to each one of you to ensure that this never happens to you!  Please visit Blizzard's own Account Security Site to learn fully and specifically what you need to do to protect yourself!


And now, the following is my own log of the events following my account getting stolen!  It can happen to you, so learn and protect yourself!


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04/21/10:

Hail, comrades.  It is indeed a dark day.  I, your Hokage, have been hacked.  I do believe it was because of an oversight on my part in posting my email address as public knowledge.  With the bnet username already known, it was no doubt a simple matter of time for the hacker to eventually hack my password.  I did believe I was secure, since I change my password regularly, but I was wrong.

First thing's first:  Minimize the damage.  Reports have been sent in to both
billing and wowgm's to begin an immediate investigation.  In the meantime, I hereby authorize ALL MEMBERS with guild bank priviledges to pull out as many items as possible and store them in a safe location.  You will not be affected by interacting with the guild bank.  Sannins are to salvage as many high value items as possible from the Vault tab.


As this hacker now wields the power of Guild Leader, it may be very difficult to salvage anything, but I urge you to try!

Once my account has been secured, and access restored, I will be taking all actions necessary to repair the damage.  I understand many of you have already submitted tickets, and for this I thank you, as it will speed up the process of investigation.  I've run all virus and spyware scans, which have come up clean.  I have also obtained an authenticator and will be attaching it to my account promptly.  Once everything has been secured and the tickets submitted, I will be appointing stewards to take temporary control of the guild.  I, along with all my disciples, will be placed on probation for 2 weeks in order to minimize any possible threat of a relapse.  In my stead, the guild will be headed by Neimue, with Brraains, Gorntock, and Anivas to aid her.  


I wish to convey my sincerest apologies for allowing this to happen, comrades.  It just goes to show that the threat of compromise is real and pervasive, and despite your vigilance, anything short of attaching an authenticator to your account is simply not enough!



Once again, please go here to learn about getting your own authenticator!  Good luck, comrades!

~Ogami 


[update] 4/22/10:  As of 9:33pm, my password was force reset.  This means the hacker no longer has access to the account, at least for the time being.  I am still unable to log in, as the account is still attached to an authenticator.  This must be undone by Billing before I can regain access and attach an authenticator of my own.  

Once again, given the extensive attention I gave to my account security, this event has proven just how important having an authenticator is.  I highly recommend you all go here to order your very own.  As an incentive, Blizzard has waived all shipping fees in order to help offset the cost of this added security.  At $6.50, it's the cheapest insurance you'll ever buy!


More to come as it unfolds!  I wish you all well, and good luck!


~Ogami


4/24/10:  Blizzard investigators have sent me two password resets, most likely because of the multiple reports they've received.  Once again, I thank you.  It's fairly safe to say that the hacker no longer can access my account, at least until they can crack the password again.  As long as their authenticator is linked to the account, I will be unable to log into either the game or any account management website.  

It now falls on the Blizz Billing Dept. to disengage the hacker authenticator and restore my access.  This is now a waiting game.  Getting a hold of them by phone is nigh impossible, so I must wait for the email to get addressed.  This may take several days.  

Obviously, I will not likely be back on in time for Deathrace: Stormwind.  I highly encourage you to run it anyway.  Any officers willing to lead the games, as well as keep track of the winners and such will be compensated for all prize monies and repairs, as well as earn a stipend of an additional 250g.  If the Deathrace does not occur, then I will reschedule it for a later date.

More to come as it unfolds.  Thank you to all who've wished me well, and good luck out there!  I miss you!


~Ogami
 


4/24/10 1:04p:  The hacker's authenticator was successfully disengaged, and my own has been attached.  My account is now my own once again, and it is nigh impenetrable.  Again, I cannot stress enough how important it is to get one of these for your account.  Protect yourself!  Go here to order yours, Blizz is covering the shipping, and will send you a cute lil core hound pup as well!  See you soon!  

~Ogami


[update] 4/25/10:  In remarkable speed, the GM investigators have already begun restoring the items stolen by the hacker.  Our lost items, mats, epic gems and flasks, as well as gold is nearly fully reimbursed!  As I am currently quarantined from the vault, as per the guild policy, I will not be able to personally assess the guild contents until May 1, but the guild steward, Neimue, acting Hokage, has informed me that the restoration is going well!  I look forward to the day when quarantine ends, and I am back to my full power!


Lok'tar!!


~Ogami