Google admitted that as many as Five Million Gmail Passwords Leaked online, but denied that this was the result of an attack against the company.
The full list of login details was
leaked on a Russian forum, with the Gmail addresses and purported passwords
posted together. However, Google said that many of the passwords were either
inaccurate or outdated, saying the list may have been culled
from attacks against other sites where Gmail addresses are used as the login
name. Still, to be on the safe side, Google reset passwords for all affected
accounts.
“One of the unfortunate realities
of the internet today is a phenomenon known in security circles as ‘credential
dumps’ - the posting of lists of usernames and passwords on the web,” Google
stated in a post on its Online Security Blog.
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Google advises users to protect their passwords using
two-step verification
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‘We’re always monitoring for these
dumps so we can respond quickly to protect our users. This week, we identified
several lists claiming to contain Google and other Internet providers’
credentials.
‘We found that less than two per
cent of the username and password combinations might have worked, and our
automated anti-hijacking systems would have blocked many of those login
attempts.”
How will it affect you?
If your email was one of the
addresses on the list, Google has already reset your login, so there’s no need to
worry. However, if you use that same password on other sites, you should change
your login details for those sites, too. That may seem onerous, but it’s
especially important for your email account: if someone can access that, they
can use it to reset all your other login details, so make sure you choose a
solid password for Gmail and other email.
Google advises users to turn on its
two-factor authentication system, which adds an extra layer of security by
sending a one time code to your mobile for logging in when you access an account
from a new device. It’s worth taking Google up on that offer. You can check if
your address was leaked at isleaked.com.
