New research has uncovered a massive database containing 26 million stolen login credentials, 1.1 million unique email addresses and 6.6 million files.
Yahoo Customers' Passwords and Emails Stolen
NordLocker reported the stolen data on Wednesday, noting that it also contained more than 2 billion browser cookies. According to Ars Technica, all of the data in the 1.2-terabyte database appears to have been extracted from more than 3 million PCs between 2018 and 2020.
NordLocker couldn't determine exactly what malware was used to collect the data. "Just like hurricanes, experts like to give dangerous malware names. But computer viruses don't need names to be capable of stealing a lot of data. The truth is that anyone can get their hands on custom malware. It's cheap, customizable, and it's everywhere on the web," the researchers wrote.
The data the malware steals can vary depending on the type of virus built, NordLocker says. The breach included more than 1 million images, 650,000 Word and PDF files, and data from games, messaging apps and file-sharing systems.
