Unfortunately, data leaks have become the norm, but they do not look alike. It is indeed a 100 GB text file containing a record number of unique passwords that was posted on a famous hacking forum this week. Whatsapp, Twitter, Amazon, Outlook … Social networks, messaging or e-commerce sites, all types of accounts are concerned.
According to the website specializing in computer security Cybernews, the compilation called “RockYou2021” contains 8,459,060,239 passwords. Its name refers to RockYou, a data breach that occurred in 2009 that involved 32 million social app passwords. The impact of RockYou2021, with its nearly 8.5 billion unique entries, is even more severe.
Large-scale cyber attacks
By combining this data with other previously leaked files containing usernames and email addresses, hackers can use RockYou2021 to mount large-scale cyber attacks.
As often, the effect will be multiplied by the fact that Internet users commonly use the same password in several applications and websites. It is therefore imperative to check as quickly as possible whether the details of one of your online accounts are concerned.
For this, Cybernews has set up two specific tools, enriched with the content of RockYou2021 in full since Tuesday: a data leak checker in which you just have to enter your email address or phone number in international format, and a password checker corrupt.
Has your password been disclosed?
After using these two tools, if your data has been compromised, immediately change the passwords for all of your online accounts. Note that it is possible to easily generate complex passwords using automatic generators.
It is also advisable to enable two-factor authentication on online accounts, so that any future hacking attempts are not blocked. Finally, increased vigilance is strongly recommended regarding spam and suspicious messages, especially from unknown senders.
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