I received an email from Gmail saying my account might have been compromised, but I'm not sure how eBay knew about it as my email is linked to my eBay account, which I hadn't logged into since 2019. I was using a new phone and service provider when I got logged out of Gmail and prompted to change my password. Google mentioned unusual activity, but the only logins I see are my own. Once I logged into eBay, they suspected unusual activity and required verification. They said they share some security protocol with Google, explaining their concern over my Gmail account. I want to know if my Gmail was really compromised and how eBay knew before I logged in again.
3 Answers
Definitely update your passwords for both Gmail and eBay. Use a really strong one with letters, numbers, and special characters, and consider enabling multi-factor authentication for extra security! If you haven't done that yet, it's a total game changer.
It sounds like both systems detected something unusual, possibly related to your email showing up in a leaked database or similar. Check your recent activity and connected devices on Gmail, and as long as you didn't notice any strange logins, you might be in the clear. Also, using a password manager for unique passwords across sites can help prevent future issues.
You can search for "Have I Been Pwned" online to see if your email appears in any data breaches.
Being flagged for suspicious activity could just be due to your email being listed in non-targeted spam distributions. Changing your password and enabling two-factor authentication should keep you fairly safe. It’s also a good idea to run malware scans on your devices just to be thorough.
Good to know! How can I do that scan on my iPhone?
You can download a trusted app like Malwarebytes from the App Store and run a scan to check for any malware.
That makes sense! How can I check for any databases where my email might have appeared?