Personal data more than 500 million users of the social platform Facebook were posted on a hacking forum in early April.
These last months, confidential data leaks on large sites are multiplying. No one is safe from this kind of hacking.
The data exposed includes personal information of some 533 million users of the social network in 106 countries, including more than 32 million in the United States, 11 million in the United Kingdom and 20 million in France, specifies the American website dedicated to the economy and finance.
A hack that dates back to 2019
Facebook said:
“This data comes from a leak that dates back to 2019 and has been resolved,” said Mike Clark, a director of the social network in a statement.
“It should be understood that the malicious actors obtained this data not by hacking our systems but by looting them on our platform before September 2019”, indicates the person in charge of Facebook. “This practice often relies on automated software to extract public information from the internet which can then be distributed on forums like this.”
So if the hacking is old, the information collected in 2019 may still be up to date. Your mail address or your phone number could still be used for hackers in 2021.
What consequences for Facebook users
If your personal data are part of the hacked data you could be a victim of scams , phishing and this data could also be sold for targeted marketing .
Experts warn against malicious emails and texts , those coming from a person who seems to know you very well and who asks you to click on a link for example. You should always be very careful about a message received from an unknown source containing a link.
It is also likely that cybercriminals use this information to impersonate the hacked person, who could thus be the victim of identity theft .
Despite these warnings, you should know that this leak at Facebook is just a drop of water in the mass of personal data traded by hackers every day.
Whatever the site where you enter personal informations , be careful to enter as little as possible and tell yourself that all this data could potentially be exposed one day.
How to protect your personal data?
There are simple safety tips , to put in place in his daily life to best protect against personal data leaks .
- Monitor its applications : your applications installed on your mobile are rich in personal data. Sort out and pay attention to the permissions you give them: geolocation, access to photos or contacts.
- Occasionally cut your geolocation as well as your wifi.
- Analyze the privacy settings of your social networks and regularly sort through their content about you.
- Choose from strong passwords and do not always put the same.
- Update your software and firewalls
- Rely only on secure sites (http s )
- Activate, if possible, the 2-step verification
The list could be long, but keep this in mind: The less personal information you enter about yourself, the less likely you will see it exposed the day a leak occurs.
How do I know if I have been the victim of the Facebook data breach?
Facebook having not yet taken any initiative to prevent victims, users must therefore turn to specialized sites.
There are several but we will retain 2:
- The platform Have I Been Pwned?
It allows Internet users to know if their e-mail address is part of a hacked database . The founder of this platform, Troy Hunt, has just updated it to allow Facebook users to check if their phone number was affected by the hack.
- The search engine CyberNews
The CyberNews site has set up a search engine that list the identifiers that have been leaked . You just need to type in your email address to find out if your data has been hacked. If your e-mail is affected, it is advisable to quickly change your password.
Personal data, what to remember
Social networks take an increasingly important place in our daily lives, it is important to keep in mind the simple safety rules.
- Be suspicious and keep certain information absolutely confidential
- Take the time to adjust the privacy settings of your profiles
- Secure your profiles : complex passwords and hide your profile information such as email address for example
- Do not use the same password than that of your e-mail
- Master your internet presence : do not stay connected when you leave a site, remember to click on “Disconnect”.