533 million Facebook numbers: smarter scams
Old scraped data is now free online. Your number, name and job make phishing much more personal.
Over the weekend, data on about 533 million Facebook users was posted for free on a hacking forum: phone numbers, names, locations, workplaces, sometimes emails. Facebook says it was scraped in 2019 through a feature it has since fixed.
Old or not, phone numbers rarely change. That makes this list useful for scammers for years.
What to expect and do:
- More convincing SMS and WhatsApp scams that use your real name and employer.
- SIM-swap attempts against people whose number protects important accounts. Add a PIN to your mobile account and move MFA off SMS where you can.
- Check your exposure with breach notification services that now include this data.
- Review what your profile shows publicly, especially phone number and who can look you up by it.
For companies: warn staff, especially finance and executives, that personalised messages are now cheap to make.