Cyberattack? What does that even mean? It doesn’t concern me.
I’m a calm pastry chef in a small town where everyone knows me. Cyberattacks are about banks, advertising agencies, or corporations in big cities. Surely no one would attack an ordinary craftsman who honestly works for his community.
Digital Aquarium
We are now deeply immersed in the digital world.
We have bank accounts, social media accounts, YouTube channels, accounting systems, and websites where we sell our products.
An integrated accounting system controls sales systems in our stores, opens and settles cash registers, and configures production systems that carry out daily production plans.
Recipe and warehouse systems are also integrated with oven control systems.
Everything is connected within a defined structure that can be paralyzed by taking over access codes.
Most people try to work efficiently by saving time and simplifying processes.
We usually have one password for everything — sometimes we modify it by changing one or two letters.
All passwords are stored in Google’s password manager.
Our professional life and the safety of our money depend on the systems we have on our smartphones — because that’s the most intuitive and simple approach.
Bank codes, system codes, BLIK codes, and access to our online store — everything in Google Password Manager.
But what if someone took control of everything? Changed all the codes?
We assume nobody will — so we don’t worry.
The situation is like leaving bicycles unlocked in front of a shop.
When a country is safe, and stealing bikes is unprofitable, nothing happens.
We leave our cars unlocked in front of our houses, expensive garden tools on open properties.
But maybe it’s worth taking an interest in cybersecurity?
The situation can change drastically if we fall victim to a hacker who, for fun or profit, paralyzes our lives.
W-MOSZCZYNSKI ppic 6-25
Why Would Someone Hack Me for Fun?
It’s not exactly about fun.
Currently, there’s a significant downturn in the IT services market.
Many highly qualified professionals in information technology have lost their jobs due to the implementation of artificial intelligence — which turned out to be much more efficient at coding than humans.
At the same time, because of the war in Ukraine and the growing importance of artificial intelligence, there is now huge demand for cybersecurity specialists.
The problem is that you can’t learn cybersecurity at university.
There, you only acquire basic knowledge.
The best cybersecurity experts come from hacker circles — they usually call themselves ethical hackers.
They claim to have hacking experience but say they’ve never done anything bad (of course, we believe that).
To become a hacker, you must start hacking — and to gain practice, you must act.
You can’t learn how to break into systems in artificial, virtual environments.
It’s best to hack into existing secured systems.
A Hooded Figure in a Dark Room with a Monitor?
Let’s imagine this situation.
I go to a café.
I sit down with my phone, maybe I want to check my account balance or send an email to a supplier.
I connect to Wi-Fi called “Café_Free” — sounds fine, right?
Who would think that behind it hides someone who just connected to my life?
This type of attack is called “man-in-the-middle” — the hacker sits in the middle of the communication, between your phone and the internet.
Someone creates a fake Wi-Fi network — identical to the one you usually see at cafés, airports, hotels, or on a Pendolino train.
They give it a familiar name, like Starbucks_WiFi or LOT_Free_WiFi — and you’re trapped.
The hacker has just grabbed your bank password, access to your online store, or even your browsing history and secret confectionery recipes.
The hacker, like a spider, sets up a fake network and waits for someone naive enough to connect.
You don’t have to click any suspicious link or download any strange file — just connect.
From that moment, all your data goes through their computer before reaching the real internet.
It’s like writing a letter to your bank — but first handing it to a stranger who reads it, copies it, and only then mails it.
Some people say: “But I’m just an ordinary person — I have nothing interesting.”
And I say: for a hacker, everything is interesting — even access to your email inbox.
They can use it for further attacks.
Your contact list can easily be sold to an advertising agency.
And since, as I mentioned, we usually have one password for everything — it becomes a problem.
Such an attack can happen anywhere — someone can create a fake network called free_Warsaw_WiFi, and people will immediately connect.
And to make it even more cinematic — some wireless keyboards and mice, the “modern” ones, can be taken over via Bluetooth.
A hacker with the right device can control your computer while sitting in a car outside your office.
You wouldn’t even know who that person is.
They can type your password, send emails, or simply log you out.
Sometimes it’s worth going back to something old and reliable — a wired keyboard and mouse.
The Extra Technician
If we have a company that employs more people than can fit on a city bus, we usually deal with a multitude of processes, services, and suppliers.
Many different specialists come through our business — plumbers, electricians, camera technicians, or accounting system operators.
We can’t monitor them all.
Now imagine this scene:
A technician comes in to “check the camera signal.”
He unplugs a cable and plugs something back in.
It looks like a regular Ethernet adapter — an inconspicuous little box.
We have plenty of such unknown devices in our companies.
But inside that little box sits a computer.
Once you plug it in, it automatically connects to the hacker’s server.
From that moment, they have access to your world.
Would you even notice?
Nobody checks what’s behind the router or under the desk.
Everything works, the internet is up, the store terminal functions — why bother?
The Hacker’s Credit Card Trick
Now one more quick trick — the credit card.
The chip, once a symbol of innovation and convenience, has become a weak point for cyberattacks.
Someone can walk right past you with a small reader in their pocket — no contact required.
You walk through a shopping mall and… boom — your card number is read.
And you have no idea.
Fortunately, there’s still the CVV number (Card Verification Value).
The card number alone won’t help the hacker unless they also gain access to your phone.
In general, attacks on bank accounts require higher expertise and are better protected by law enforcement.
That’s why hackers often target something easier — your home server.
A Beginner Hacker’s Exercise: How to Break Into a Home Server
Picture someone sitting in a car outside your house.
That’s how a hacker attack on your home Wi-Fi network might look.
Remember the café example? The hacker who accessed a phone through free Wi-Fi can now see the password to your home server through Google Password Manager.
Most people use default IP addresses like 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1 — and never change them because “it works.”
The router login panel is standard, accessible through a browser.
But — not only you know that address.
A hacker who once connected to your Wi-Fi, or that technician who had temporary access, can scan your entire local network in seconds.
They’ll see your home server at 192.168.0.105, your router at 192.168.0.1, and your laptop at 192.168.0.103.
If the hacker doesn’t already have your password, they try default ones — using a list of the 150 most common passwords worldwide.
Their software checks all of them in less than a minute.
Many people log into their server panels with passwords like:
admin/admin, admin/1234, user/password, qwerty, or MyCompany2023.
Because who would hack a pastry chef’s home server?
Once the hacker gets in, they use a password dictionary — an automatic program that tries every common combination.
A minute or two, and they’re inside.
They can see your saved passwords (stored in a .txt file on your desktop), install malware, or open a backdoor for permanent access.
They can redirect your web traffic so that everyone visiting your online store or blog receives fake files, ads, or even malware — and you won’t even notice.
Everything looks normal.
All this happens simply because your server had a default address and default password.
Because you “didn’t bother to change it.”
We’re pastry chefs — honest people.
We work with flour, not with computers.
The Cherry on the Cake
The modern car key — a wireless module that opens your vehicle.
It transmits a coded signal — and the hacker can intercept it, record it, and wait.
Then, at night, they approach your car and click — it’s open.
No noise. No broken windows.
It sounds like science fiction, but it’s not.
It’s not the future — it’s happening now.
And it can happen to you.
All because someone left a strange little box in the cabinet next to your modem.
Why Updates Matter
We can now decide — either we fall into permanent cyber-paranoia, or we classify the author of this article among the “cyber-freaks,” people who can turn even the brightest day into a dark night.
The choice about your mental comfort is yours — but remember one thing: keep everything updated.
That’s the simplest solution.
Update everything — routers, phones, computers, refrigerators, robot vacuums, even your toaster if it has Wi-Fi.
Each update doesn’t just add icons — it fixes vulnerabilities that someone could exploit.
Most hacking attacks are done remotely and rely on system vulnerabilities.
These are gradually patched by software providers.
If you don’t update, you’re leaving the door open with a note saying “Welcome, hackers.”
Also, change your passwords, memorize them, or write them on paper — not in .txt files.
And don’t let Google Password Manager remember them for you.
Because the truth is:
Today’s hacker doesn’t have to be a genius.
All it takes is you forgetting to click “Install update,” connecting to free airport Wi-Fi, or leaving your router’s default password unchanged.
And suddenly your digital infrastructure becomes a testing ground for some beginner hacker learning the trade.