New Google AI helper helps recover hacked YouTube accounts
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Google has confirmed that it will soon roll out a new AI-powered assistant to help YouTube users who've been locked out of their accounts following a hacker attack to quickly regain access — and in fact, it's already rolling out a new account recovery tool to some users.
To sign in to YouTube, you must first enter your Google account email address and password. This allows you to like videos, save favorites, and subscribe to channels. However, your Google account also opens the door to your online life by granting access to your Gmail inbox, which is a prime target for people looking to compromise your login credentials to access sensitive information. Unfortunately, there are many ways for someone to gain access to your Google account, the power behind services like Gmail, Google Photos, and Google Maps. The attacker could be a cybercriminal or hacker, a friend, or even a family member, but when it comes to YouTube, it's most likely the former. The reason is that an account that has any kind of following and is respected for providing information to its viewers on any subject becomes a valuable conduit for the distribution of malware, phishing attacks, and cryptocurrency scams. All of this explains why it's important to gain access to a hacked Google account as quickly as possible. As some users have long complained, this isn't as easy as it seems. Things are starting to change, at least when it comes to playing YouTube channels.
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Introducing YouTube's new AI-powered Hacking Channel Assistant
In an August 21 YouTube support post, TeamYouTube confirmed that it would be releasing a new troubleshooting tool to help users who are locked out of their accounts that they believe have been hacked. The AI-powered Hacked Channel Assistant is currently only available to English-speaking users, i.e. those who access the YouTube Help Center in English, and even then, some of the troubleshooting features are only available to certain creators at this time. Eligible users will see a “Chat with Hacked Channel Assistant” option at the top of their YouTube account help page. “We're working to make this available to all users in the future,” Google said.
Eligible account holders will see this new hacked YouTube Channel Assistant option.
“This tool will first secure your Google login by asking you a series of questions about you and your channel, and then revert any changes a hacker made to your channel,” Google said.
Our AI-powered chatbot will guide you through the account recovery process for your YouTube channel.
Before using the new Channel Hacking Helper, Google displays a warning dialog that the AI is still in the learning phase and may “show inaccurate or disturbing results.” It also asks users to agree to Google's Terms of Service and Generative AI Prohibited Use Policy, which states that human reviewers may “read, annotate, and process your conversations.” It is therefore important to understand that nothing you type during a chat in the Help Assistant that you want to hide from such reviewers will be typed.
Google AI Helper Usage Policy
Before using the new helper bot, Google encourages users to double-check their YouTube channels for signs that they may have been hacked, including:
Changes you didn't make: Different profile picture, description, email settings, AdSense for YouTube association, or messages sent. Videos uploaded that aren't yours: Other people have posted videos under your Google account. You may receive email notifications about penalties and strikes for inappropriate content on these videos.
Hacked Channel Assistant can help you recover and secure your Google Account, restore changes made to your YouTube channel, and reduce the risk of future account compromise.
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