Passwords of over 500,000 Belgians leaked in data breach.
Over 500,000 Belgians have had their passwords leaked due to a significant data breach. The breach occurred on RaidForums, an online platform commonly used by hackers to exchange stolen data. Although the FBI and Europol took down the platform last year, certain data has resurfaced and become publicly available. The data leak includes private and business email addresses from well-known companies and institutions such as KU Leuven, Ghent University, and VRT.
Experts believe the data may have originated from an older hack of a popular site like Dropbox. As per haveibeenpwned.com, the data appears to have been stolen in 2020, and it probably contains over a year old passwords.
In light of this incident, following some best practices for password management is important.
1️⃣ Enable two-step verification for an extra layer of security.
2️⃣ Regularly change passwords to limit the impact of a data leak.
3️⃣ Use different passwords for different sites. A password manager can help manage this.
4️⃣ Avoid personal information in passwords and opt for a complex mix of characters.
5️⃣ Never respond to emails asking for passwords or personal information.