A massive data leak containing billions of passwords has been discovered. You should act quickly and check your passwords.
What is this leak? The massive data leak includes data from numerous previous security breaches and contains around 12 terabytes of information, which in turn consists of 26 billion records.
It is also important to note that this is not just pure login data, but also additional sensitive information of the owners.
The data was allegedly collected by fraudsters who intended to exploit it
Where does the data come from? The data consists of thousands of compiled and newly indexed data leaks, data breaches, and privately sold databases. Security researchers suspect that malicious actors have collected billions of data points, which have now been disclosed.
Which services are affected? Hundreds of services are affected, including many well-known services such as Twitter, Adobe, or Telegram. A few of them are listed here as examples.
- Weibo (504M)
- MySpace (360M)
- Twitter (281M)
- Deezer (258M)
- Linkedin (251M)
- AdultFriendFinder (220M)
- Adobe (153M)
- Canva (143M)
- Daily Motion (86M)
- Dropbox (69M)
- Telegram (41M)
How to check your data: The colleagues at Cybernews have a search mask on their site that you can use to search for websites. Here you can quickly check if websites you use or services are affected.
Then you should take action: Bob Dyachenko, a security researcher and head of SecurityDiscovery, explained that people especially need to react when they use one password for multiple services. He writes: “If users use the same passwords for their Netflix account as they do for their Gmail account, attackers can exploit this to access other, more sensitive accounts.”
He also warns emphatically: Individuals who find their data in the massive leak should prepare to receive many spam emails in the near future. Because the leak would also be exploited by malicious individuals.
Tips for secure passwords: Do you want to change your password and are looking for tips and recommendations? Then check out our recommendations on MeinMMO. Here we explain why you need strong passwords and how to create them:
7 tips for strong passwords and why you need them in the first place
