An extreme data hack has seen a shocking 184 million passwords from Google, Apple and Meta accounts being exposed.
Experts are alerting people to the worrying data breach which has been described as a ‘cybercriminal’s dream’.
This is according to a report on Website Planet by Jeremiah Fowler, a cybersecurity researcher.
In the report, it stated that the exposed database wasn’t protected by a password or encrypted, and instead it contained ‘184,162,718 unique logins and passwords, totaling a massive 47.42 GB of raw credential data’.
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The breach has impacted both Google and Apple emails and passwords, as well as social media login details and bank accounts.
The social media accounts affected included platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook.
Fowler went on to say: “To confirm the authenticity of the data, I messaged multiple email addresses listed in the database and explained that I was investigating a data exposure that may have involved their information. I was able to validate several records as these individuals confirmed that the records contained their accurate and valid passwords.
“Many people unknowingly treat their email accounts like free cloud storage and keep years’ worth of sensitive documents, such as tax forms, medical records, contracts, and passwords without considering how sensitive they are. This could create serious security and privacy risks if criminals were to gain access to thousands or even millions of email accounts.”
Why was the database compiled?
Fowler has suggested that the database may have been compiled as part of a malware in order to steal users’ data from them.
However, it’s not clear whether there was a legitimate reason behind the creation of the file or if it was being used with malicious intent.
The researcher got in touch with the hosting provider who removed the database from public access once noticed.
Still, it’s very concerning that a large amount of sensitive information may have been exposed from personal email accounts.
In order to tighten up your own personal cybersecurity, Fowler offered his own expertises on the matter.
He went on to say: “From a cybersecurity perspective, I highly recommend knowing what sensitive information is stored in your email account and regularly deleting old, sensitive emails that contain PII, financial documents or any other important files.
“If sensitive files must be shared, I recommend using an encrypted cloud storage solution instead of an email.”
It might be worth checking out your own security settings to make sure your data is protected!