It can be easy for someone to find your email address online. Your email address is what you use everywhere - between friends and family, websites and services. No matter the security, something that has your email address will be hacked at some point. It is only a matter of time until your email addresses are leaked. Then everyone knows your email address and can sell it or try to login to your accounts.
Creating alias email addresses for the services you use can reduce the risk of someone connecting you with private email address. In this post we will elaborate on different ways Cyber-criminals use your email address for harm.
Social Media
An obvious place to look for your email address is your Facebook or LinkedIn page. You may have added it to make it easy for people to reach you. If you use Twitter or Instagram to promote your work or business, your email address may be exposed there too. Tools such as Profil3r or The Harvester can be used to find all of your accounts simply by email address. Once a malicious actor can piece your email address and your social media account together, they have all the information to make your life miserable.
Business and School Websites
The ‘Team’, ‘Leadership’ and ‘About Us’ page of business websites may feature your email address and social media profile. Many schools and Universities also post information about their students, and some have even accidentally leaked much more than that.
Google Search
A simple Google search of your name will bring up your social profiles, public databases that may show your email address and more.
Through Email Retrieval Websites
Websites like RocketReach use machine learning to gather datapoints on millions of professionals - verified email addresses, social media profiles and phone numbers are available once you become a member of the site. You can search for a person’s email address by inputting their name, company or LinkedIn profile URL.
Prevent your private email address from being abused by using a free CatchMailNot address.