After a report by Recode that hinted that an announcement was coming, Yahoo has confirmed that it suffered from a massive security breach, with hackers exposing the data of at least 500 million users.
According to Yahoo, the account information was stolen in late 2014, with the acquired data including names, email addresses, birthdays, telephone numbers and hashed passwords. In some cases, the hackers were also able to acquire both encrypted and unencrypted security questions and their accompanying answers.
While the ongoing investigation reveals that the stolen information does not include unprotected passwords, bank account information and payment card data, Yahoo is still asking users to take action for their own protection.
This is because, while bank account information and payment card data are not stored in the same system that was affected by the security breach, the email accounts of users usually contain personal and sensitive information, such as log-in details to online accounts.
For users who have Yahoo accounts, here are the things that you can do to protect yourself from the security breach.
Change Your Yahoo Passwords And Security Questions
Yahoo users are highly recommended that they change not just the passwords of their accounts, but also the security questions that they have associated with their account. This is because of certain cases wherein hackers were able to acquire the security questions and answers, allowing them to gain access to the account even if the password was changed.
Change Passwords And Security Questions For Other Websites
For users who have used similar passwords and security questions in other online accounts, they are also recommended to change these security details on those websites and services. Hackers may be able to use the Yahoo log-in credentials that were exposed for other online accounts, which would be a problem if users have chosen to use a password several times.
Go Through Emails And Delete What Is Necessary
Hackers may still find a way to enter the email inboxes of the affected accounts, so it is recommended that users review the contents of their inbox to see if there is any sensitive information stored inside. Emails with such information, including log-in credentials for other online accounts and personal correspondence, should be deleted and the trash folder then emptied.
Activate Two-Factor Authentication
Yahoo offers two-factor authentication, which will require the service to verify if the user trying to log in to an account is indeed its owner, especially if the device being used to access the account is unfamiliar to the system. Yahoo will send a code to the user's smartphone to verify a login, adding an additional security layer on top of a password that may have been acquired by hackers.
Stay Alert
Hackers may also be sending emails to users that are asking for personal information, or contain links to download attachments. Users should stay alert against these suspicious emails, and never send out sensitive information nor download potentially malicious attachments.
