About a week ago, my Discord and Steam accounts were compromised and used to post a scam message. I changed my passwords and enabled two-factor authentication on my accounts, and I haven't noticed any further unauthorized logins. I also ran a malware scan, which came back clean. Is there a reliable way to determine whether my computer is safe, especially if the original problem involved stolen session tokens?
4 Answers
For the highest level of confidence, back up personal documents after checking them, create official installation media, wipe the system drive, and reinstall the operating system. That’s more work than scanning, but it removes persistent malware that ordinary scans might miss. Afterward, update the system, reinstall software only from trusted sources, and change important passwords again from the clean installation.
It’s difficult to know from the symptoms alone because the way the accounts were compromised matters. A clean scan is reassuring, but it doesn’t prove that every possible threat is gone. Review account login history, revoke all active sessions and connected applications, change passwords from a trusted device, and keep your operating system and software updated.
I’m not sure how it happened either. I ran a malware scan and it didn’t find anything, so I’m trying to work out whether I need to do more.
If you downloaded a game or installer from an unofficial or unfamiliar source, it could have been involved, although there’s no way to confirm that from the information here. Avoid pirated or suspicious downloads, verify the publisher, and scan files before opening them. Also check whether any unknown applications or extensions appeared around the time of the incident.
I don’t remember downloading anything suspicious, but I did install a game from a site I only vaguely remember. I’ll check what was installed around that time.
Two-factor authentication protects against many password-based break-ins, but it may not stop malware that steals browser cookies or application session tokens. Since you don’t know the cause, run more than one reputable on-demand scanner, inspect recently installed programs and browser extensions, and sign out of all sessions after changing your passwords. Don’t reuse passwords, and store unique ones in a password manager.
Someone mentioned that it could have been a session-token stealer. I’ve now started using unique passwords, a password manager, and two-factor authentication.
The reinstall itself may take less than an hour if the installation media is ready. The part that usually takes longer is backing up files and setting everything up again, so make sure backups are carefully checked first.