I'm so sorry to hear what you're going through. Are you okay?

That all sounds SO AWFUL! Was wondering where you were, glad you found a way to communicate with us!

Wow... Sorry to hear that and thank you for the reminder to back things up. I always mean to but don't do it often.

I hope 2022 will be better for you!

You've had it really rough, but glad to know you have survived the ordeal. I am certain that the friends you made here on the forum, I along them, hope you will soon be able to put these recent horrendous events behind you and regain a generous measure of continuing peace in your life. These recent times have been challenging to many of us.

I am praying for you, "Ms Quietness!" 😁

Moses

I can't imagine what you've been through. Glad to see you here again and wish you all the best.

I'm so sorry to hear that! You have been missed here on the rose forum and I know we'll all be glad to have you back.

Vap, I am so sorry for all that you have been dealing with. It is good to have you back.

Prayers for a better year

Vapor, I'm also glad to see you posting. Like Sheila said, we had wondered what happened to you and were worried. I'm sorry to read your year has been full of personal tragedy. I hope you are feeling a little better as time goes on. Please join us often again. Diane

Hi Vaporvac, I'm so glad to see you here again. Like Diane, I'm so sorry to hear that your year was so devastating. I did message you. Don't know if you got it, but don't worry about responding - I'm just glad you're here now. We've missed you.

I am so sorry to hear that you have had such a bad time. I hope that 2022 will be better! I don't comment often, but this forum and the antique rose forum are my go-to happy places - and I hope you can use them the same way. Best wishes from Denmark!

So sorry to know what you have gone through Vaporvac, I’ve been wondering why we haven't heard from you. It’s so good to have you back!

Oh my.... I so very sorry that this has happened to you. We have all missed you and glad that you are back on line....

I pray that everything is ok for you now. It must have not only been frustrating, but depressing.. I hope that everyone here can help to lift your spirits....

God Bless you.

Hope you are back on track

Well, THAT's awful! How'd they get in??? IMWTK!!!

Hopefully, 3rd time's a charm. houzz hasn't been notifying me of posts so I'm just seeing these now. You guys are the best! I knew I came to the right place!😘

Moses, This spring I need to transplant my 4!!!! Quietness cuttings from my wall where they rooted with little help from me!!! Can't wait!🤗

I am so sorry! What an awful experience.

@jerijen ,I believe it was through the Google play store. I don't have any non-factory installed apps, but noticed a couple appeared. I think they infected imy phone when I tried to erase them as a large percentage of apps allow a back door. Google will do NOTHING to help retrieve one's account. The infection is through the phone, however, which is how they takeover and change the 2 step verification. Google has eliminated questions, so all one needs is a telephone number routed to a stolen account and you're golden. I dont have any social media outside of a couple of forums. Google is the culprit.

One morning my phone woke up and the android appeared and the screen said erasing. When it stopped everything was gone...back to factory settings with no way to sign back in to Google. They quickly changed things once I tried on other devices.

Vapor, I cannot imagine the horror of this all. I am totally no help on any of this sadly except my deepest sympathy. I hope no one died.

I, too hope, you have lost no one in your life. I need to have my son in law read your posts to see what his take on this might be--he's a cybersecurity expert. I'm useless on the topic. Diane

oh no! This is terrible! Sorry to hear this--hope things will slowly get better from here.

Best wishes to you, Vaporvac. I'm sorry you've been having such a hard time, and hope things will improve soon. It's nice to have you back on the forum.

Oh, Vaporvac! I am so, SO sorry!! No one deserves to suffer this kind of violation. It’s everyone’s nightmare! The fact that you are so thoughtful and conscious of your tech use just compounds the crime. Honestly, I get so angry about all the malware circulating through the web of connections. And the fact that Google left you alone to deal with this invasion is inexcusable! I’ll be thinking of you as you reassemble your world, and I will take very seriously the real possibility of anything that’s Google being a security risk. If my daughter’s school didn’t require a parent Google account, I’d steer clear. I’ve lost count of the number of friends whose gmail was hacked. Thank you so much for checking in on the forum even while you are digging out of all the chaos. Sending you all the best for speedy closure to this whole nasty business. Carol

Vaporvac Z6-OhioRiverValley I am so sorry...I hope Diane's SIL has ideas for you. We have had trouble with credit cards every move which was enough....can't imagine how aweful this was for you! I am praying for a super fabulous year for you in 2022 and that you will see some good come from all you trouble!!!

Sounds horrible. I am so sorry you went through this misery.

So upsetting. The cloud isn't the backup they say it is. Everything can be gone 8n seconds and nothings private. Sorry it happened to you. Wishing you better luck in the Tiger year.

Just saw this. So sorry Vap. What a stressful thing to go through. My debit card got hacked a couple years ago after buying gas from a local gas station.

So sorry. What an awful experience. I hope you didn't suffer any other issues because of the hack. :-(

I've been inspired to change my google password! I've been using basically the same password for everything for...twelve years...but now, at least, google has something different.

OMG that is horrible and devastating!!! I am so sorry to hear that your account was hacked so thoroughly. Google just switched to 2-step authentication but that doesn’t protect if they get into your phone:-( You might consider switching to an iPhone. Apple is better known for the security of their phones. They are more rigorous of the apps they allow in their stores too.

https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/ios-13-vs-android-10-which-os-is-more-secure/

https://secureteam.co.uk/articles/ios-vs-android-which-is-more-secure/

I had two step verification. I Wish they still had questions. only had one app. Hackers install fakes to both platforms unfortunately. Im just not joining google any longer. they are the issue. Thank you for the links.😊

What is the verification for iphones? I csnt really afgord s new one, but thinking of the future.

Mine is face recognition plus a 6 digit pass number to get into the phone, if for example you are wearing a mask, you need to use the pass numbers. Face recognition is great though. My fingerprints are always a mess with all the gardening I do and if your fingers are even slightly damp fingerprint readers don’t work.

Vaporvac I keep thinking about how awful of an experience you've gone through and I feel for you. I keep thinking about how we all could protect ourselves and how that's possible, especially how in your situation you were so careful.

I came across this article that explained some new things for me and I thought others might find it interesting, too. https://www.aarp.org/home-family/personal-technology/info-2021/how-to-avoid-sim-swap-scams.html

I am so sorry Vaporvac! That is just devastating! I would be so lost if that happened to me. Prayers for you!

Vaporvac: I am sorry to hear that this happened.

Was it Reader’s Digest that espoused ”laughter is the best medicine”?

I just heard this: Eton is a place where boys are taught Latin and tax avoidance, while wearing full evening dress (credit to Jonathan Pie).

To add to everything else, I now need to get a new number and find as my phone is 4years old that it is no longer compatible with the 5g rollout, so I need a new one. It was a 4g phone, but T&Txt is 3g and only data is 4g. WTH!!! I just got a replacement phone in June! I Considered an iphone, but went with prepaid so go another Samsung. Looks like everyone will need new phones soon unless they are rated 5g. Its always something.