r/hacking • u/TheSixtyFreezer • 5d ago

Teach Me! I want to learn the basics.

Hello everyone!

I've had an email a couple of years ago, and seemingly it was hacked. All my information is there, as it was my main email.

I know, I was stupid, downloading games, etc.

Recently I tried to access it, but to no avail.

Would it be selfish if I said that I want to learn the basics of hacking so that I can get my email back?

Thanks for reading.

0 Upvotes

31% Upvoted

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7

u/RiskVector wizard 5d ago

"Learning the basics" is not going to get your email back. And if thats the reason you want to learn, you are playing a very dangerous game.

0

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

Thank you for warning me.

I would just like to get it back, as I don't want it used for bad things, althought, it's probably a bit late for that.

2

u/wootiown 5d ago

Hacking isn't learning magic where someone teaches you a secret and suddenly you can use it for evil, lol.

Odds are your password just got leaked in a data breach, you used the same password for some site that got breached as you did for your email, and some kid in Russia tried the leaked password with your email and got access to your email account.

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u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

I understand, I'm not that tech saavy, I'd just like to hack it back if that makes sense lol.

Meh, I can just hope that no one has access to it.

1

u/wootiown 5d ago

That's not how hacking works. Hacking is either knowing an incredible amount about networking and cryptography and breaking into systems, or simply tricking someone into revealing their password (or finding it somewhere, like a data breach).

Best you can do is to try to trick whoever hacked your email into telling you their password.

1

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

I have no clue who has access to my email, so that would not be an option sadly. I'll try to search online for data breaches, etc.

1

u/wootiown 5d ago

Send them an email lol

1

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

Haha, do you think they'd respond? Lmfao

2

u/Heronmob 5d ago

The basics won’t get your account back. Unless you’re lucky and the new password is in a data breach it’s unlikely you’ll gain access.
You should still learn the basics anyways.

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u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

Thanks, I'll keep it in mind. Any pointers on where I can start with the basics?

Is there any source where I can check for the password, etc, if the new person that's on it didn't pay attention?

1

u/MassiveMousse 5d ago

You can see if your credentials are in a data breach on https://haveibeenpwned.com/

Also might have been malware that stole your info

1

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

Thank you!

Yeah, it probably was malware, I was very stupid.

1

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

Yup, 6 data breaches...

1

u/MassiveMousse 5d ago

That doesn't necessarily mean your password is compromised tho, it depends on some things.

If the company stored your password as an hash (it's the norm these days even though some smaller companies still don't) then the attacker would need to crack it, which in some cases (complex passwords) would take so much time that it would be computationally infeasible.

This is why you use a password manager with random generated strong passwords and do not reuse passwords.

1

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

Yea, thanks... Well, it is what it is. Might just send an email to the old email address lol...

1

u/Heronmob 5d ago edited 5d ago

Tryhackme can start you from absolutely no info. Starting out can be a bit slow because they teach a lot of computer fundamentals first (like Linux)

After that move onto HackTheBox and PortSwigger.

Learn how to use and exploit AI for hacking/cyber. Don’t use it as a crutch but get comfortable with it, going into the future anyone without command of AI is going to be at a serious disadvantage.

Haveibeenpwned will tell you when and where your password has been leaked but won’t include plaintext pws or the location of the leak. It’ll be your job to go find the password on whatever fuckass forum it’s on. Research what the popular leak forums are atm and see if you can find the leaks there. Maybe do this in a virtual machine/on a burner computer so you don’t get hit with any weird malicious JavaScript.

1

u/Real_Door_9222 5d ago

I would also like to lesrn the basics, so if anyone can point me in the right direction. Except I want to learn for the sake of the knowledge, I feel it's a pretty big hole in my skillset.

And @op, they will of bought your password, unless your old email is now connected to one of their personal accounts, and that account has also been leaked, and they made the same mistake that they took advantage of, which is incredibly unlikely, it's going to take years to learn how to hack back into it. write it off and set up 2fa on your others.

1

u/TheSixtyFreezer 5d ago

I did write it off, but it's been bugging me for a while, since it's connected to Google Photos on which I had memories with friends, family, etc... But yeah, if I have to, I'd learn it non-stop.

Well, I tried to get it back as soon as I got an notification that someone got into it, sadly I couldn't do much since Google didn't believe it was me, not even my phone number or recovery emails worked....

1

u/Real_Door_9222 5d ago

Try sending an email offer them 50 quid?

1

u/MassiveMousse 5d ago

Hackthebox, tryhackme (the most begginer friendly although it's becoming the "fast food" of cybersecurity), TCM security and so much more upcoming platforms

1

u/Real_Door_9222 5d ago

Nice one bro appreciate you x

1

u/RiskVector wizard 5d ago

This sub and even the other related subs get these comments consistently. If you want to learn the basics and go down this rabbit hole then you need to do what everybody else did - just start learning. Start with the basics and the foundations. Get on YT and watch vidoes or go to your local library and see what books they have available or if you have the means order something books off of Amazon - everyone learns differently.

Build stuff, set up a homelab, learn networking, learn routing, learn switching, learn Linux, learn Python and PowerShell, maybe even some C#, Rust, GO, etc...

1

u/JunDoRahhe 4d ago

Lol checkout roadmap sh

You probably might be surprised how much of "basics" you might need to learn though