*Repost aggiesal's earlier thread: Major hack exposes 184 million Apple, Google, FB accounts:Change passwords NOW*

[hlthe2b]

Inexplicably the earlier thread on this was locked in LBN because of the source. Well, having just received notice from my credit union that they believe an attempt was made to charge via my Google account, I take this very seriously and you should too. I just spent two hours changing APPLE and GOOGLE passwords on all my devices and an encrypted password manager. Please do so yourselves, too. My credit union is GREAT and they immediately look for these issues and shut them down, but not all are as lucky. Protect yourselves!. SO, here is a NON-UK MIRROR tabloid link to the same information. I can ASSURE you it is REAL!

Earlier locked thread info: https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143467074#post16

"Better" source for the same info ('Wired' is recognized and respected throughout the computer cybersecurity industry, so please accept its validity as a source. It is, unfortunately, highly paywalled, but here's a free version--(likely why the UK's Mirror version was originally linked) :

Nonpaywalled archive: https://archive.ph/34K2B

https://www.wired.com/story/mysterious-database-logins-governments-social-media/
Mysterious Database of 184 Million Records Exposes Vast Array of Login Credentials
A trove of breached data, which has now been taken down, includes user logins for platforms including Apple, Google, and Meta. Among the exposed accounts are ones linked to dozens of governments.

The possibility that data could be inadvertently exposed in a misconfigured or otherwise unsecured database is a longtime privacy nightmare that has been difficult to fully address. But the new discovery of a massive trove of 184 million records—including Apple, Facebook, and Google logins and credentials for accounts connected to multiple governments—underscores the risks of recklessly compiling sensitive information in a repository that could become a single point of failure.

In early May, longtime data-breach hunter and security researcher Jeremiah Fowler discovered an exposed Elastic database containing 184,162,718 records across more than 47 GB of data. Typically, Fowler says, he is able to gather clues about who controls an exposed database from its contents—details about the organization, data related to its customers or employees, or other indicators that suggest why the data is being collected. This database, however, didn’t include any clues about who owns the data or where it may have been gathered from.
The sheer range and massive scope of the login details, which include accounts connected to a large array of digital services, indicate that the data is some sort of compilation, possibly kept by researchers investigating a data breach or other cybercriminal activity or owned directly by attackers and stolen by infostealer malware.

--more-- at the first archived link above. If you need help changing all your various passwords on your devices just google "Apple, Google hack" on YouTube for some video help.

Good luck, all!