Data breaches and leaks are never fun — especially when they affect a platform you frequently use. Usually, the most dangerous targets are e-commerce due to the fact that they include payment information. But the other most difficult breaches to contain involve social media platforms — all the personal data they contain.
Breaches of popular social networks are thankfully quite rare, but they do happen. And when they do, it can spell disaster for millions of users. Tap or click here to see how hackers sold 267 million Facebook profiles on the Dark Web.
But if you’re a user of Instagram, TikTok or YouTube, you have a new reason to be alarmed. A defunct data broker left a database of nearly 235 million profiles from these platforms online without any kind of password or authentication to protect it. This means millions of profiles could now be in the hands of cybercriminals without their owners ever knowing.
According to a new security report by Comparitech, a massive database containing nearly 235 million Instagram, YouTube and TikTok accounts was discovered online with no form of password or authentication.
This data was initially discovered by the data aggregator Social Data, who reported its findings to Comparitech. After doing some deep diving, Comparitech found that the database belonged to a defunct company known as Deep Social, which was banned from Facebook and Instagram back in 2018 for scraping data from user profiles.
And based on what we can see in the stolen data, it appears that Deep Social was quite busy gathering data. In the sample analyzed by Comparitech, the following number of records were documented from each platform:
To make matters worse, the data contained in each record includes some or all of the following: Profile names, full real names, profile photos, account descriptions, engagement data, likes, age, gender, phone numbers, email addresses and whether or not the profiles in question are businesses or not.
Thankfully, no passwords were included in the leak, but that’s small comfort compared to the sheer volume of additional data that was gathered. Add in the fact that the information was left unsecured and you have a recipe for widespread phishing campaigns and cyberattacks.
After the findings were published, the database vanished. It appeared to be removed by its original owners, which means the window of opportunity to gather the scraped data has closed. If hackers want a piece of it, they’ll have to take a trip to the Dark Web and do some research.
Tap or click here to see how much your digital life sells for on the Dark Web.
Twitter is one of the leading social media platforms on the web — and the online home of some of the biggest celebrities and public figures. But in terms of features, it hasn’t changed much since it originally debuted.
Open/download audioRadio shows like mine, newspapers, magazines and virtually every other form of media are held accountable for publishing something libelous, false or dangerous. That’s not the case for social media platforms, and I say it’s time for that to end.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It’s no exaggeration to say that the COVID-19 pandemic is a golden age for scammers. With so many people concerned about health, money and politics at once, con artists have found ample opportunity to cash in on the panic.
Social media platforms may get old, but they never stay the same. Just ask Facebook, which continues to roll out new features like group-calls, virtual currency and the ability to hide political ads during an election year.
Everybody knows the internet is big, but ask someone “how big?” and they’ll probably look confused.
The information superhighway we all know and love might actually be too big to truly comprehend — with more than four billion active users and more than one billion websites online today.
Open/download audioSocial media platforms are hotbeds for fake news. What is Twitter’s latest plan to battle false and dangerous info? A warning that leaves me asking … Really? That’s all you got?
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It’s no exaggeration to say that COVID-19 has totally upended the global economy. According to labor statistics, 20.5 million U.S. jobs were lost in April alone. As of now, the unemployment rate sits at a staggering 14.7% — the worst since the Great Depression.
Many questions about the coronavirus still remain, but few prompt as much heated discussion as the true origin of this deadly pandemic.
Based on what we know, there’s little doubt that the virus is of animal origins. Despite piles of scientific evidence, some still insist on spreading baseless conspiracies. Tap or click here to see why COVID-19 is not a bioweapon.
Loneliness is an emotion everyone experiences at one time or another and makes for great country music; however, it definitely takes its toll on your mental health.
But how can you combat loneliness when you’re surrounded by media-hungry friends and family members? Most social media sites encourage “likes” to determine whether your post is a hit or miss. But what if there was a different, healthier, way to interact with your social circle?
Kids these days. Give them a minute alone online and they’ll find some bizarre or potentially dangerous way to entertain themselves. That’s typically the reason why so many strange social media challenges emerge; and once they get popular enough, there’s no stopping the spread.
Did you hear the news? The Wuhan coronavirus has made its way to American shores! As of now, there have been 6 confirmed cases in the United States, and many more sick people are still waiting for a confirmation on their symptoms.
Open/download audioLong gone are the days of believing you can use major social media platforms and keep your info private. But a new option on the market takes things even further — connecting you with other users using facial recognition software. Yes, it’s as creepy as it sounds.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Though candidates started hitting the campaign trail last year, the arrival of 2020 marks the official start of election season. And where there’s a U.S. Presidential election, there’s ample opportunity for political ads, disinformation campaigns and other digital mischief.
Social media plays a significant role in our lives. We can think of our accounts as virtual storybooks of experiences and accomplishments.
We’re all so engrossed in our digital lives that even with Facebook’s unbelievable number of missteps over the years, people can’t seem to quit using the site. Tap or click to learn more about Facebook’s data leak. But have you ever wondered what happens to your social media accounts after you’ve passed away?
With the new year comes the next major election, now only months away. That means we’re about to be subject to a constant news cycle of election coverage and a steady stream of social media posts from your most opinionated relatives.
When it comes to social media platforms that protect your privacy and data, Facebook is objectively not one of them. The company has been entangled in legal battles on the matter for years, and the issue doesn’t look like it will improve.
We recently got a great question from a listener who read our article on four things to do when you get a new PC; tap or click here to read it. This person really liked the piece (we do too!), and wondered if we could do one on things to do when you get a new smartphone.
Facebook has evolved dramatically in the span of one year. After declaring the future was “private,” Mark Zuckerberg and co. have worked to adapt the platform for modern privacy sensibilities. In spite of this, there are still some issues attracting regulators’ attention. Tap or click here to see how the platform is still selling user data.
Personal data is big business, and apps across the web are dying to get yours by whatever means necessary. We’ve already seen how dedicated social media platforms are to providing data to third parties. Click or tap to see what Facebook does with your data.
