MySpace Hack Update: Users Should Delete Unused Accounts Now

MySpace still exists. It used to be the most popular social networking site. It existed before Facebook and it still exists - though not used as much, it's still active. With it, are details of people beyond the population of the United States. Reports of account leakage has hit the web when as many as 360 million MySpace accounts were up for sale from an on line dump.

MySpace's parent company, Time Inc, confirmed that the massive leakage included email addresses, passwords and user names that were taken from an old 2013 hack. According to Business Wire, this was before MySpace redesigned the site to close some critical security gaps. Independent has it that MySpace has already diabled the affected passwords to avoid unauthorized access to the accounts.

Independent explained that there was no exact count as to how many active accounts still remained in MySpace but due to the advent of new social media sites, like Facebook, MySpace has lost its vogue-ness and it's likely that there are tons of accounts that have not been accessed to for several years. Experts remind users that user names and passwords shouldn't be used for every on line service as this makes it easy for hackers and thieves to steal information and gain access to a users' digital footprint. To avoid further issues, MySpace and experts suggest deleting old and unused accounts. An alternative would be to create a throw-away email address instead. By changing the credentials on your old accounts and disassociating them from on line services that you use in the present-day, you can help make sure none of your other Internet identities are put at risk. This limits your exposure to hackers.

Personal data from the MySpace hack sold up to thousands of dollars. This just proves that even outdated information can be significant for hackers.

Real Time Analytics