Mark’s advice to others
Get a VPN, differ your passwords, never log into your bank on the open “surface” internet – instead log in under a VPN so that your data is not visible. Never use public (coffee shop, hotel, etc.) WiFi without a VPN!
Mark A.
Age 32, Canada, team lead
I've lived in the UK and New Zealand before moving to Canada and, about eight years ago, I was the victim of a credit card hack in the UK. Normally you believe that people will hack your card number online to use it far overseas, but they'd attempted to make a £400 purchase at Tesco, a British grocery store chain.
In Canada, just last year, I had my Canadian credit card hacked, and somebody had successfully used it in a Pizza shop right here in the city I live in.
This was the event that spurred me on to get a VPN, review the way I use the internet, and review my passwords.
The consequence was a disturbance of my daily routine. Having your cards canceled means waiting for the replacement cards to come in the mail, which means putting payment methods on hold until they arrive.