Newark mum describes frightening experience with cybercrime after hackers blocked her Google account

A woman is encouraging people to be more vigilant with their internet passwords after her personal information was stolen from a hacked e-mail account.

Nadia Baldini, 43, of Newark, described the experience as frightening and now does not know who has access to important details, such as her her bank account and solicitor’s documents.

The first she was aware of it was when she received a notification to say her someone was trying to access her Google account. By the time she had made the 12-minute journey from Long Bennington to Newark, she could no longer log into it.

“You don’t know what they can do with your information. It’s in their hands,” Nadia said.

“When I got home, I realised that I couldn’t log into my email any more.”

She immediately tried to contact Google to get her account blocked, but was told there was nothing they could do.

Now, her only option is to sign up for credit checks costing £15 a month to see if anyone is trying to use her details.

Nadia said: “This is just so unbelievable. Why is there no system in place to prevent this before it can happen? I just feel so scared. I can’t control everything.

“I can’t believe that I don’t have the power to change the situation in any way.

“I don’t want to spend the rest of my life keeping an eye on my credit report.”

Unfortunately, this is not the first time Nadia has been a victim of crime. The family also had their van stolen from outside their home in February last year.

She now wants to warn people about how easy it is to have your details stolen online.

“I want to tell anybody now, please change your passwords and make sure everything is secure,” Nadia said.

Google have been approached for comment.

For any help and advice about cybercrime, visit the Victim Support website.