Malware can come in different forms
As a tech virtual assistant and web developer, I use “page ruler” to help me with accurate measurements on a site. This page ruler works in my browser as a chrome extension. According to google, extensions are small software programs that customize your browsing experience. They enable users to tailor Chrome functionality and behavior to individual needs or preferences. … They can range from a simple icon, such as the Google Mail Checker extension shown on the right, to overriding an entire page. Do you know that malware can come in different forms?
I recently had a situation where it seemed someone got a hold of my information and used it to make a purchase on PayPal and start a billing agreement. Trust me this happened.
Story:
I went through the whole process of calling PayPal and filing for a dispute claim. Paypal requested I change my password which I did. I called them just to make sure that this was not an issue on their site. They assured me it was not but that investigation would take some time. Ten minutes later, PayPal sent an email saying that the dispute was closed and that the transaction was authorized. Wait… does this mean I can’t get my 200 CAD refund? PayPal not believing closed my dispute claim and said I must have subscribed.
I recalled PayPal again, letting them know that they made a very hasty decision to close my dispute and telling them to check my billing agreement history (How can a subscription I did not authorize suddenly get authorized and to top it off, have a yearly billing agreement attached)? The customer service staff on PayPal insisted I check the biller account as well and call them. I already did that, I was still on a free plan in their system. She kept emphasizing that the billing agreement was canceled. That was not the point for me I needed a refund and I needed to let her know that. So I emphasized a couple of times and told her to do her due diligence of checking for past billing agreements that I may have had. Thankfully she did go on to check my subscription history and then transferred me to the department that could really help.
I had to prove to them what I was saying before they took me seriously and that was showing them dates, browser history and even the last time I used the subscription on PayPal and subsequently when it became inactive.
I like to say now that I have gotten a refund from PayPal and as my next steps, I went to passwords.google.com to check for compromised passwords. I have changed all compromised passwords. I immediately activated express VPN. I also checked my network providers and the devices on there. That was not the source.
This morning I checked my chrome extension and found that the extension called page ruler had malware. I remember getting a notification about chrome disabling it but because I was too busy, I did not delete from my system.
Long story short that has been taken care of now that I know that malware can come in different forms.
Lessons learned from this ordeal.
I have learned that I need to take immediate action once I get a notification from Google about extensions being disabled, especially now that the whole world has turned digital.
Secondly, I learned not to give up when it seems the likes of PayPal have taken an unfavorable decision regarding a dispute claim, keep insisting, show proofs, get documents.
Thirdly do your own research to find out where the issue is coming from. I checked on google passwords, went to the biller's website to check, and even went on my network to confirm that I have not been hacked. I went as far as chrome extensions.
Fourthly update all passwords periodically. I will diligently do this from now on so I don’t have to go through this ordeal again.
Have you had a similar experience recently, do you have other lessons to draw out from my ordeal? I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment/thumbs up below.
