Urgent: Check Accounts After Major Social Data Breach Affects 1.2B Users
Massive Facebook Data Breach Claims: 1.2 Billion Users’ Data Sold on Dark Web
A cybercriminal known as “ByteBreaker” claims to have stolen private information from over 1.2 billion Facebook accounts—potentially one of the largest data breaches in social media history. The stolen data, reportedly being sold on the dark web, includes names, user IDs, email addresses, phone numbers, birthdates, gender details, and location data (city, state, country).
[Image: Dark web screen with a hacker silhouette]
Caption: Cybercriminals often sell stolen data on hidden dark web markets.
How Was the Data Stolen?
ByteBreaker allegedly exploited Facebook’s Application Programming Interface (API), a tool that allows apps to access user profiles. By abusing this system, the attacker allegedly scraped data at an unprecedented scale—like finding a loophole in a library’s system to download everyone’s contact info.
Is the Breach Legitimate?
Meta, Facebook’s parent company, claims the data is not new. A spokesperson stated the information matches a 2021 breach impacting 533 million users. Cybersecurity researchers at Cybernews and Hackread also noted inconsistencies:
- A sample of 100,000 records shared by ByteBreaker included old data from the 2021 breach.
- The hacker claimed the 1.2 billion records were stored in “200 million rows,” but databases require one row per user, meaning 1.2 billion rows would be needed, raising doubts.
[Image: Cybersecurity analyst reviewing code]
Caption: Experts questioned inconsistencies in the hacker’s claims, including reused data.
Largest Social Media Breach?
If verified, this would surpass the 2021 Facebook breach and the 700 million LinkedIn data scrape in 2021. However, Meta insists no new data was compromised and that past vulnerabilities were addressed.
What Should Users Do?
Despite uncertainty, experts advise taking precautions:
- Change passwords for Facebook and linked accounts.
- Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) for added login security.
- Monitor bank accounts and set up fraud alerts.
- Avoid reusing passwords across platforms.
Meta’s Response
Meta reiterated that scraping data through features designed to help users violates its policies. The company stated it has “teams working to detect and stop these behaviors,” emphasizing proactive measures against misuse.
Bottom Line
While ByteBreaker’s claims are under scrutiny, the incident underscores ongoing risks of data scraping. Users should remain vigilant, update security settings, and treat recycled breach data as a potential threat.
[Image: Person using a smartphone with security alerts]
Caption: Enabling 2FA and updating passwords can help protect against breaches.
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