Qakbot data breach: 6.4M accounts exposed
Severity: high · Patch status: no-fix-needed · Since 2023-08-29
In August 2023, the US Justice Department announced a multinational operation involving actions in the United States, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom to disrupt the botnet and malware known as Qakbot and take down its infrastructure. After the takedown, 6.43M email addresses were provided to HIBP to help notify victims of the malware. Exposed data: email addresses, passwords. The breach dates from Aug 29, 2023; Have I Been Pwned loaded it on Aug 29, 2023.
What to do
- If you had a Qakbot account, change its password and the password of any other account that reused it.
- Turn on multi-factor authentication wherever it is offered.
- Check whether your addresses are in this breach at https://haveibeenpwned.com.
- Expect targeted phishing that quotes the leaked details; verify any unexpected contact out of band.
Sources
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