technical blargh

[rushthatspeaks]

So I haven't been able to log into my gmail since the 31st. I assumed for much of this time that this was because the internet I was on was having issues, but I am now back on my own internet and I can access anything else I want to just fine. I can log into my Google account. I can do anything with the Google account other than email.

If I attempt to get at the email, the page just attempts to connect forever, and then claims to be loading a lot of pages which are strings of letters and numbers I don't understand, all of which do, however, end in .google.somethingorother. This process appears not to end.

Also my account profile claims the most recent countries I've logged in from are the U.S. (correct), Canada (yup) and Russia (haven't been there since 1997).

Should I worry about my mail having been hacked? Whether it has been hacked or not, how should I begin the process of addressing this?

Also, if you have emailed me since the 31st I haven't gotten it, and if you emailed me on like the 29th-30th I haven't been able to reply.

Comments

[starlady]

I would bet that you've got a bot(net?) piggybacking on your account and doing multiple continuous login attempts, which then led Google to ban you. You should definitely contact Google, and then when you get your account back, enable 2-step verification.

[thistleingrey]

Yes, this. The .google.somethingorother part is a bad sign.

[kate_nepveu]

Ugh, I see my usual debug suggestion of "try using https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=html " is insufficient.

Account recovery options help page, why were you so hard to find?

http://support.google.com/mail/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=185710&topic=1669055&ctx=topic

[jinian]

I did email you! Is there an alternative address? Good luck with getting things fixed.

[green_knight]

Have you attempted to log in through an e-mail client at all?

(No clues how to solve this, and 'log in from Russia' sounds like a 'contact Google' thing, but good luck with THAT.

[nineweaving.livejournal.com]

Yikes! I have indeed mailed you. Shall I call?

Sadly, I have no tech skills to offer. I hope the hive mind can put this straight for you.

Nine

[q10.livejournal.com]

possibly useful link:

http://support.google.com/mail/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=50270

[sovay]

Also, if you have emailed me since the 31st I haven't gotten it, and if you emailed me on like the 29th-30th I haven't been able to reply.

Just Happy New Year's, because around midnight I couldn't for love or money get a text message to go through. Best of luck.

[sorenlundi.livejournal.com]

I've sure you've got better things to do, but I'd love to hear about Russia in '97.

[ckd]

That sounds exceedingly suspicious, yes. It could mean that your computer has some kind of malware on it, which would explain the loading redirects.

If you haven't managed to sort it out in the next few days, I should have some time Sunday or later to take a look at it.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

I suppose you have done something about this by now, but: Wim suggests that you make sure to try from another computer, since malware or something could have redirected your browser inappropriately. Also maybe you can change your Google account password if you can access Google features at all? Good luck.

[gaudior.livejournal.com]

It works just fine from other computers... malware, eh? What can be done about that?

[tiamat360.livejournal.com]

Malwarebytes has been good to me in the past: http://download.cnet.com/Malwarebytes-Anti-Malware/3000-8022_4-10804572.html

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Well, we don't know exactly; this is the first Mac we've heard of that has had such a problem. I would first try using a different browser on the infected computer: if that's okay, uninstalling and reinstalling the browser rushthatspeaks prefers might fix the problem. Next, maybe creating a new account on the same laptop and using that could work. Third option: there are anti-virus programs that work on Macs, like Sophos, which my university requires, but sometimes they aren't really able to cope with removing the malware they see. If it can remove it, great. Otherwise, you guys can probably safely back up files to an outboard drive, reformat, and reinstall the OS, because the anti-virus software should tell you if the virus gets in or out with your backup. (I wouldn't trust it enough to back up directly to the other laptop, though.) That's a pain, more of one if you have nonstandard programs installed, but it should definitely work.

There are more complex options for most of these things, so if you can recruit an on-site assistant the earth may wind up a lot less scorched. I recommended this because it should work for anybody.