Really odd Netflix issue, logged into someone else’s account
Discussion
My work colleague has asked me if I can help fathom this out and I’m drawing blanks. His parents (early 70’s & retired) text him yesterday to say they’re enjoying watching The Crown. He asked how they’re watching it and they told him ‘Netflix’.
He asked how because they don’t have an account and they told him ‘we don’t know, we click on the Netflix logo and it comes on’.
He went round today and had a look. Sure enough they were logged in to a woman’s Netflix account who lives some 250 miles away (distinct company email address he was able to Google and find her LinkedIn profile).
The tv is 5 years old and was purchased from John Lewis brand new. Only reasoning I can think is maybe the tv was sent back and then his parents purchased it and it was logged in by the previous owner?
He does have a 10 year old niece that stays with his parents fairly often, but I can’t see how she would know those login credentials, unless she’s going somewhere dodgy on the web to find stolen Netflix account details?
I told him to log the tv out of it and email the account owner via her work email to tell her to change her password and make all devices re-login.
Anyone got any ideas?
He asked how because they don’t have an account and they told him ‘we don’t know, we click on the Netflix logo and it comes on’.
He went round today and had a look. Sure enough they were logged in to a woman’s Netflix account who lives some 250 miles away (distinct company email address he was able to Google and find her LinkedIn profile).
The tv is 5 years old and was purchased from John Lewis brand new. Only reasoning I can think is maybe the tv was sent back and then his parents purchased it and it was logged in by the previous owner?
He does have a 10 year old niece that stays with his parents fairly often, but I can’t see how she would know those login credentials, unless she’s going somewhere dodgy on the web to find stolen Netflix account details?
I told him to log the tv out of it and email the account owner via her work email to tell her to change her password and make all devices re-login.
Anyone got any ideas?
Edited by Big Rig on Sunday 11th April 18:45
You've probably covered the most likely scenarios already
-Returned TV
-Niece knows someone who shares the person's account (i.e she knows her daughter or something
-Niece got given the account by someone else
What I would say is you get an email every time someone logs in on Netflix and I can't believe it would have gone 5 years without logging you out at least once after an update or something.
-Returned TV
-Niece knows someone who shares the person's account (i.e she knows her daughter or something
-Niece got given the account by someone else
What I would say is you get an email every time someone logs in on Netflix and I can't believe it would have gone 5 years without logging you out at least once after an update or something.
Edited by joropug on Sunday 11th April 19:29
You've covered the obvious, however a very out there theory...
When you sign in, you can use the option to use a code from a mobile (same as iplayer etc). In theory, if someone was doing that part of the sign up and entered the code incorrectly at the same time it was being offered to someone else, it would sign them in.
What's odd is that when you go in to Netflix, it would surely say, at the who is watching screen, the name of someone else, and would that not cause them to question it?
When you sign in, you can use the option to use a code from a mobile (same as iplayer etc). In theory, if someone was doing that part of the sign up and entered the code incorrectly at the same time it was being offered to someone else, it would sign them in.
What's odd is that when you go in to Netflix, it would surely say, at the who is watching screen, the name of someone else, and would that not cause them to question it?
Login details were probably shared amongst a bunch of kids. The simplest explanation is usually the one closest to being accurate.
I'm not sure about people noticing emails about new logins from Netflix.
My sister had her Netflix account compromised last year. I guided her through checking recent logins and access, and they all came from the same area in Saudi Arabia.
She didn't remember seeing any emails about new sign-ins.
The first she knew there was something up was when she saw a new Profile name appear on Netflix. If the numpties hadn't done that it's not likely she would've noticed for a long time, if at all. Prior to that she'd noticed some stuff appear in her Continue Watching list which she hadn't watched, but had shrugged it off, not realising somebody else was accessing the account.
I'm not sure about people noticing emails about new logins from Netflix.
My sister had her Netflix account compromised last year. I guided her through checking recent logins and access, and they all came from the same area in Saudi Arabia.
She didn't remember seeing any emails about new sign-ins.
The first she knew there was something up was when she saw a new Profile name appear on Netflix. If the numpties hadn't done that it's not likely she would've noticed for a long time, if at all. Prior to that she'd noticed some stuff appear in her Continue Watching list which she hadn't watched, but had shrugged it off, not realising somebody else was accessing the account.
Big Rig said:
He does have a 10 year old niece that stays with his parents fairly often, but I can’t see how she would know those login credentials, unless she’s going somewhere dodgy on the web to find stolen Netflix account details?
Ding ding ding.Not stolen, friend just shared it online through whatever we they met. Minecraft etc Life finds a way.
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