LinkedIn Data Breach: Was Your Email Exposed?

LinkedIn has been in major breaches

LinkedIn is one of the world's largest professional networks, and unfortunately, it has been the target of significant data breaches. If you have a LinkedIn account, there's a reasonable chance your email address has appeared in a public breach dataset.

The good news: you can check in seconds. And if your email was exposed, there are straightforward steps you can take to protect yourself.

The LinkedIn breaches — what happened

2012 breach: 117 million accounts

In June 2012, LinkedIn suffered a significant breach that exposed 117 million user accounts. The hackers obtained email addresses and encrypted passwords, which were later cracked by security researchers. This breach was confirmed by LinkedIn and security experts worldwide.

2021 scrape: 700 million profiles

In 2021, security researchers discovered that attackers had scraped data from 700 million LinkedIn profiles. This was not a traditional breach of LinkedIn's security, but rather automated scraping of publicly visible profile information. The exposed data included email addresses, phone numbers, and professional details.

What data was exposed

2012 breach data

The 2012 breach exposed:

• Email addresses
• Hashed passwords (which were later cracked)
• Profile information

2021 scrape data

The 2021 incident exposed publicly visible information:

• Email addresses
• Phone numbers
• Job titles and company names
• Professional headlines
• Location information

Check if your email was exposed

You don't need to guess whether your email was in the LinkedIn breaches. Use a free breach check tool to find out in seconds.

The check is powered by Have I Been Pwned, the most comprehensive and trusted data breach database. No account is required, and your email is not stored.

What to do if your email was exposed

Step 1: Change your LinkedIn password

If your email appears in a breach, change your LinkedIn password immediately. Use a strong password that you haven't used anywhere else. A strong password is at least 12 characters and includes uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols.

Step 2: Check for reused passwords

If you used the same password on other accounts, change those passwords too. Attackers often test exposed passwords across multiple sites. This is especially important for email, banking, and work accounts.

Step 3: Enable two-step verification

Enable two-step verification (also called two-factor authentication or 2FA) on your LinkedIn account and on your most important accounts: email, banking, and work. Two-step verification adds a second layer of protection even if someone has your password.

Step 4: Watch for phishing

Be cautious of emails that claim to be from LinkedIn or any of your other accounts. Scammers often use breach data to create convincing phishing emails. Legitimate companies never ask for your password by email. If you receive a suspicious email, don't click any links—go directly to the official website instead.

Protect yourself going forward

Changing passwords and enabling 2FA are one-time actions. To stay protected from future breaches, monitor your email address for new exposures. Instead of checking manually every few months, use an automated breach monitoring service.

SecurityScore.me monitors your email address automatically and alerts you instantly if it appears in a new breach. You can monitor your work email, personal email, and email addresses you use on other services.

Summary

LinkedIn has been in major breaches, and your email may have been exposed. The first step is to check using a free breach check tool. If you were affected, change your password, check for reused passwords elsewhere, enable two-step verification, and watch for phishing emails.

Going forward, monitor your email address automatically so you're alerted the moment it appears in any new breach. This takes the guesswork out of staying safe online.