Frozen without knowing why :(

[Nyssa]

So, today I tried to login to Neopets, when I got the message: Invalid password.

I frowned and typed it again, this time including my date of birth. But, again: Invalid password.

 

This is where I got scared and typed my username in the 'Forgotten your password?' box: Error. Sorry, but we do not have a valid email address on file for that account and cannot send the password!

 

I got even more scared and tried the 'Forgotten your username?' box: Error. We were unable to find an account registered to that email address.

 

So I searched for my username: Sorry, nothing containing 'unstoppablepain' was found. Please try again.

 

By then I already realized what was going on, but searched for one of my pets anyway: Error. The owner of this Neopet has had their account frozen.

 

 

BUT WHY?! I've done NOTHING wrong :( I've been on this account for almost 3 years now :crying: it just SUCKS.

 

Already sent an e-mail, but knowing TNT, I probably won't even get a reply.

 

I just really want to know WHY I got frozen. I think I got hacked (but how???) and then they changed my password and e-mailaddress. But why did I get frozen? My mom got hacked once, but they 'only' took all her NPs and valuable items, not her entire account.

[Viridian]

I have no clue to be honest. Did you visit any obscure sites regarding neopets of lately or visited a shop where they sold items like codestones for a very low price? You might have been CGd.

[Nyssa]

I have no clue to be honest. Did you visit any obscure sites regarding neopets of lately or visited a shop where they sold items like codestones for a very low price? You might have been CGd.

 

Obscure sites... I don't think so :S but I'm not sure. And as for the codestones; I did buy a fairly cheap codestone a while back, but that was more than a month ago so..

 

Gah I HATE cookie grabbers :S it's just so mean. I don't understand why people would hack someone.

 

I know that it's 'just a site', but I've spend HOURS on Neopets almost every day.

 

I hope I get a reply from TNT soon. The advent calender starts tomorrow and I'd like to get my prize...

[Viridian]

Yea I know the feeling... As long as your account is frozen you can collect items on a side account.

 

I doubt the CGer is from a month ago... I wouldn't know what is wrong in this case. At least your account is frozen so the hacker cannot do any harm either.

 

When was the last time you logged in?

[Nyssa]

yeah... I don't have a side account ;p. I got frozen last time for having multiple accounts, so I didn't create any other accounts this time. Better safe than sorry.

 

But but...I'd rather still have my account..

 

Last night :s.. soo... 16 hours ago.

 

Is it possible for me to get my old account back? Or will TNT just keep me frozen because I got hacked? (if all my NPs and such were gone, they can see that, right? So that's proof that I got hacked and didn't get myself frozen..)

[Viridian]

It's possible you get it back. There is this form: http://www.neopets.com/autoform_other.phtml?other=frozen which you can fill in and hopefully get your account back.

 

You can create a side account for as long as it's frozen and not use it anymore when it's unfrozen again.

[Nyssa]

Yeah, already filled it in.. hoping for the best. But TNT usually isn't so mild about unfreezing..

 

Think I'll do that *sigh* Neopets is just way too addictive ;p

[Masaryk]

It really sounds like you got CGed. I'm really sorry to hear that. It happened to me, back in June, just before all of the CG mayhem started. It looks like someone logged into your account, changed the email and password, probably took all your stuff, then self-froze the account.

 

It's good that you've filled out the form already. Unfortunately, it can be a little bit difficult to prove that your account belongs to you. I had to fill out the form three times before a TNT staffer was satisfied with my information. Keep brainstorming stuff for the form, just in case. The more specific you can be, the better. Also, the more info you can give them that only you could know, like past email accounts attached to your account and past passwords, the more likely they are to believe that it's your account. If you need any help or encouragement, feel free to PM me.

 

If your account is frozen due to CGing, you will be very likely to get it back in a week or two. Try to be patient. I know that it's really hard to wait, but don't lose hope! In the meantime, just keep doing your stuff on a side account.

[Nyssa]

It really sounds like you got CGed. I'm really sorry to hear that. It happened to me, back in June, just before all of the CG mayhem started. It looks like someone logged into your account, changed the email and password, probably took all your stuff, then self-froze the account.

 

It's good that you've filled out the form already. Unfortunately, it can be a little bit difficult to prove that your account belongs to you. I had to fill out the form three times before a TNT staffer was satisfied with my information. Keep brainstorming stuff for the form, just in case. The more specific you can be, the better. Also, the more info you can give them that only you could know, like past email accounts attached to your account and past passwords, the more likely they are to believe that it's your account. If you need any help or encouragement, feel free to PM me.

 

If your account is frozen due to CGing, you will be very likely to get it back in a week or two. Try to be patient. I know that it's really hard to wait, but don't lose hope! In the meantime, just keep doing your stuff on a side account.

 

Thank you so much :) you gave me some hope hahah. Yeah I'll fight for it.. even though all my stuff probably is gone. (I'm hoping my SM port is still in tact, but I fear the worst).

 

So now what? I just wait for a reply from TNT? Because I remember some stuff I can fill in to prove it's really me throughout the day, but I'm not gonna stalk them everytime I remember something new ;p. Unfortunately I didn't change my e-mail address once, and I almost never change my password.

 

It's just so annoying that I have to prove that this account is mine xD.

 

How can I prevent this from happening again?

[Shane for Wax]

Probably by being careful about what you buy from shops. If you see something like a codestone for an amazing 10 NP, then it's likely there's some funny business going on.

 

Oh and put a PIN on everything.

[Xepha]

Just for the record, when your account is frozen, you can still type your password and try to get in. Then you get a big warning in red telling you which rule has been broken. If you can't get inside at all, well your password has been changed in some ways or you didn't type your username or password correctly (lower, upper cases... cap lock...)

 

It's very important to always pick a different password for each of the website that you use, and each of your email address. Make those password impossible to guess or to crack. We have a guide about this here : http://www.thedailyneopets.com/articles/security/

[Masaryk]

Since there was a long weekend in the US that just passed, TNT probably has quite the backlog of reports to sift through right now. You will probably get a reply from them in a day or two. If you're lucky, the staff member viewing your report will be satisfied with your information, and you won't have to fill out another report. So, you should wait until you hear from TNT before sending in another report.

[antiaircraft]

Neopets crackers are just sad. :sad01_anim:

 

Anyway, if you want to avoid getting hit by CGers in the future (and if you're running Firefox), you might want to check out the NoScript extension. It blocks JavaScript completely unless you specifically tell it to allow some sites, which pretty much means the end of the line for cookie grabbers. However, since the CG scripts you see on Neopets all come from neopets.com anyway, allowing Neopets scripts isn't an option, so games (and a few other features) won't work. You can work around this by disabling NoScript when you're on a safe page and need to use JavaScript - unwieldy, but hey, it works.

 

Of course, caution and common sense are still the best security tools. :yes:

 

Also, for the record, please take a look at this explanation of the term 'hacker'. Don't misuse it please. :(

 

Well, best of luck getting your account back!

[Nyssa]

Yeah but won't a cookie grabber 'grab' my PIN as well?

 

Yes I know, but I can't login because someone changed my password. I don't mistype my password 7 times. And I have a pretty random password including numbers and stuff.

 

No mail yet.. I already created a new account, but I'm gonna work HARD to get my old one back.

 

Also, I read that Neopets freeze people who block Java script? Because this makes the site faster and that gives you an unfair advantage above other players. (I don't use firefox anymore because Neopets always gives an error in firefox for some strange reason...)

 

And I meant no disrespect to hackers in any way. I know that it's hard etc, I just didn't know how to call it ;p. (Cookie Grabbed, apparently)

[Shane for Wax]

haha. Neopets.com/~NoYouWereNotHacked

 

Best petpage ever for this type of thing. I know a hacker, and he would never do this type of thing. It's petty.

 

I'm sorry for your loss though. Last time I heard something like this happen I totally changed my password to one I can barely remember myself XD

[Nyssa]

Just for the record, I have nothing against people who know how to hack a computer xD;

 

But now I'm curious; will a PIN on everything protect me if I get CG'd? Or will they be able to 'grab' my PIN as well?

 

(I ask this because PINs are sooo annoying hahah but if they protect me...)

 

Yeah I know right! I had that too one. Years ago I lost my password because I changed it into something 'safe', forgot my password.. and retrieving your password was way harder back then. Can't remember why, but I do remember not being able to get it back xD.

 

Still no news from TNT. (I get that they're busy, I'm just anxious ;p)

[Shane for Wax]

I am not totally sure it can grab PINs. You can always clear your cookies before you do any shopping, dunno how much that would help though. I'm not totally knowledgeable about cookies.

[manevilus]

A cookie grabber is sort of like a keylogger, only its grabbing cookies, (The thieves! I love cookies!), anyway, and those cookies have information in them, they basically track your information for websites to use. Clearing your temporary internet files as well as your cookies will make you have to log in to neopets manually as well. I clear my cache everytime I close firefox so I have to relogin everytime I close firefox. Cookie grabbers hide on websites as opposed onto your computer like a keylogger. I.E. when you login to neopets it creates a cookie, and then it is stored there until you clear your cookies(or in my case log out of firefox) so a cookie grabber could grab until your clear your cache. To be honest it is best to watch what shops you buy from and just be careful in what sites you visit all around :)

 

EDIT*******: It can't grab your pin as your pin is not a cookie. You have to enter it everytime.

[Shane for Wax]

You can get Firefox to remember your PIN though lol

[manevilus]

You can get Firefox to remember your PIN though lol

Yes, but that is a local function of firefox as opposed to something that can be grabbed through a cookie grabber. The pin is stored locally and auto filled out(basically like a macro) as opposed to the cookies which are stored locally and used to send info over the net. Firefox doesnt send the actual pin, you do that, all it does is store the numbers to your HD and put them in there automatically for you.

[Shane for Wax]

But long story short, PINs are safe. For the most part. Safe from CGs that is.

[Nyssa]

So a PIN actually protects you? :D

 

Thanks for clearing that up! Will def. use the PIN now. (although this is a major pain in the butt). Better safe than sorry again I guess.

 

I wish IE remembered a PIN though. Or I wish that firefox would just run neopets correctly for me.

 

OR I wish that I'd never been CG'd

 

or... okay nevermind.

[Shane for Wax]

PINs only protect your items and such like that. So even if someone got your password, they would also have to figure out your PIN in order to pound your pets, remove your items from your SDB, and your money in the bank.

[Nyssa]

True, but that would time a while. I mean there are 9^4 possibilities, right?

 

Isn't there some sort of limit for how many times you enter your PIN wrong a day?

 

(Still no news)

[antiaircraft]

A cookie grabber is sort of like a keylogger, only its grabbing cookies, (The thieves! I love cookies!), anyway, and those cookies have information in them, they basically track your information for websites to use. Clearing your temporary internet files as well as your cookies will make you have to log in to neopets manually as well. I clear my cache everytime I close firefox so I have to relogin everytime I close firefox. Cookie grabbers hide on websites as opposed onto your computer like a keylogger. I.E. when you login to neopets it creates a cookie, and then it is stored there until you clear your cookies(or in my case log out of firefox) so a cookie grabber could grab until your clear your cache. To be honest it is best to watch what shops you buy from and just be careful in what sites you visit all around :)

 

EDIT*******: It can't grab your pin as your pin is not a cookie. You have to enter it everytime.

Yay! Finally, I'm not the one who has to explain cookies! :P Thanks a lot mate - normally I'm the one who has to type out long paragraphs explaining basic computing concepts (except when I do it, everybody goes ' :S I don't get it' xD ).

 

Yes, but that is a local function of firefox as opposed to something that can be grabbed through a cookie grabber. The pin is stored locally and auto filled out(basically like a macro) as opposed to the cookies which are stored locally and used to send info over the net. Firefox doesnt send the actual pin, you do that, all it does is store the numbers to your HD and put them in there automatically for you.

To add on to what manevilus said: Firefox also automatically encrypts passwords it saves locally with an internally stored key (so it takes a little extra effort for malicious entities on your computer to steal your data). If you set a master password, it will use that in addition to its standard encryption, thus keeping your passwords very safe as far as storage is concerned.

 

True, but that would time a while. I mean there are 9^4 possibilities, right?

 

Isn't there some sort of limit for how many times you enter your PIN wrong a day?

Technically there are 10^4 = 10,000 possibilities (0 through 9 gives 10 digits). And if you enter a PIN incorrectly five times, you have to wait an hour before you can try again (yes, I deliberately went and entered my PIN incorrectly five times to confirm this ;) ).

 

So, assuming an ideal system:

 

(10,000 tries needed) / (5 tries/hour) = 2000 hours = 83 days and 8 hours needed to try every single possibility

 

Using a naive median estimate (since I'm too tired to bother with normal distribution calculations), the estimated time needed for a cracker to guess your PIN is:

 

2000 hours / 2 = 1000 hours = 41 days and 16 hours

 

If you haven't changed your password by then... well, just remember you should be changing your password about once a month. :yes:

 

Also, blocking JavaScript doesn't give you any advantage on Neopets - if anything, it puts you at a disadvantage functionality-wise. I believe what you read from TNT was concerning blocking advertisements on Neopets - you aren't allowed to do that while restocking; neither are you allowed to abuse ad blockers and use them to hide the images of non-valuable items while restocking.

 

By the way, what exactly is the problem you're having with Firefox and Neopets? We might be able to help you there.