Your Password Could Be in the 183 Million Passwords Leak — Here’s What to Do Now
Before you panic, here’s how to check if your email was actually affected.
You’ve probably seen the headlines going around about the 183 million passwords leaking online, including some linked to Gmail accounts. It sounds scary, and honestly, it’s understandable to feel a bit uneasy. Email holds our work files, bank alerts, private conversations, basically our key details. But before you panic or rush to change your password, you might want to first check if your email is actually part of the leak.
According to cybersecurity researcher Troy Hunt, a massive 3.5-terabyte database containing millions of exposed email credentials has surfaced. Hunt, who runs Have I Been Pwned, said the data includes emails from several platforms, including Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, and others.
The leaked passwords mostly came from something called Stealer logs. These data files are collected by malware that quietly records what people type into login screens. So if someone typed their Gmail password on an infected device, that info could end up logged and later sold or reposted somewhere else.
So while Gmail itself wasn’t compromised, many Gmail users could still be affected if they’ve reused their password on other sites that were breached in the past.
Why This Still Matters
Google has clarified that its systems were not breached. However, the company is urging users to take basic precautions like enabling two-step verification and even switching to passkeys, which are harder to steal than passwords. If your email appears in any leak report, updating the password immediately is non-negotiable.
What You Should Do Right Now
The quickest way to check if your email is affected is to go to HaveIBeenPwned.com and enter your email. If it shows up in this leak, change that password immediately, ideally to something you haven’t used anywhere else. And if you haven’t already, turn on two-factor authentication (2FA) to add an extra lock even if the password leaks.
Emmanuel Umahi
Conclusion
Security platforms can only do so much. The last layer of protection is always the choices we make. No system is completely breach-proof, and no one is completely off the radar. So, the safest approach is to assume your data could surface somewhere one day, and set your defenses to reflect that. Little efforts like updating your passwords and turning on 2FA can put you back in control of your data.
