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Discord is a popular messaging and voice chat app used by gamers, content creators, and other users around the world. Unfortunately, it has become a target for hackers.
They can gain access to users' accounts by exploiting weaknesses in the software or by stealing their login credentials. Once they are in, they can use it to send malicious messages, steal personal information, or even take complete control of someone's account.
Users can set up a couple of security measures to protect their accounts from getting into the wrong hands. This article will guide them about some of the steps that they can take to keep their Discord profiles secure.
Note: This article is subjective and reflects the writer's views.
5 methods to keep your Discord account safe
1) Create a unique and strong password
First, you need to ensure to create a strong and secure password for your Discord account. Doing so is essential as it is the first line of defense against hackers who are looking to access your details and take control of your account.
A strong password can be created using a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. It should be unique and not something that can be guessed easily.
Further, the password should be long, which will make it difficult to guess, and should be changed regularly. There are several websites such as Password Monster to check if you have a strong combination.
2) Enabling two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is an important security measure that helps protect your data and accounts from unauthorized access. Requiring two forms of identification helps ensure that only you can access your account and data. This added layer of security helps protect against hackers, malware, and phishing attacks that attempt to gain access to your account.
Additionally, two-factor authentication helps protect against takeover attempts. This is more effective when an unauthorized user already has one set of details to access your account. If 2FA is enabled, they won't be able to take over, allowing you a chance to keep your profile safe.
3) Avoid clicking on suspicious and free Nitro links
Avoid clicking on links provided by unknown people. If someone you don’t know sends a link, be careful before going to it. It’s never a good idea to click on a link from an unknown source.
Check the URL, and if the link looks suspicious, hover over it to see where it’s going. If it is long and complicated or does not seem related to the conversation you were having, avoid clicking on it.
Do not click on a shortened link from an unknown source at any costs. It might look innocent, but could be hiding malicious content. If it is shortened, either avoid clicking it or copy and paste it into a URL expander to check where the link redirects to.
Discord allows users to gift their friend Nitro, which is a subscription to the premium perks of the platform. This can be a handy tool for hackers to take advantage of and create a bot to trap some people.
Sometimes malicious users purchase verified bots and automate them to spread such scam links. Everyone needs to be specifically aware of these types of scams as they can look like official bots due to the verified tag, but in reality, they are harmful.
4) Do not add unknown bots on your server
Bots are a great way to get users engaged on a server as they can be used to play games, listen to music, and much more. Unfortunately, doing so can also make you a target for malicious bots. They can be used to carry out harmful activities on the platform, such as spamming, phishing, and spreading malware.
The risks of unknowingly interacting with malicious bots are real. They can be used to send malicious links or messages, steal personal information, spy on server texts, and even spread malware.
It is very important to be aware of any suspicious activity on your server, such as messages that are sent out of context or links to unknown websites. This can be real evidence that the bot is unsafe.
5) Privacy and safety settings
Discord has a set of safety settings to customize the people who can send direct texts and message requests. The app can also scan the messages sent by them to check for suspicious and explicit content.
Setting the safe direct settings to at least "My friends are nice" will scan messages from users that are not on your friend list and will help keep you safe from most malicious websites and media.
