How to Check If You Have Been Hacked?

Following the guide about staying safe online, we have decided to create this article. As more and more hacking attacks happen every day, those worried about their online safety require some way to check if their accounts were exposed in some of the hacks that happen across the websites and apps we use daily. In order to help you find out more about the status of your accounts — here’s a list of data breach detention websites which hold info about hacked accounts.

Have I Been Pwned

Have I Been Pwned is one of the first, most popular and probably the best website in this sphere. The staff works hard to track down breaches, verify them as legitimate, and capture data so you can check it out.

Once you open the site, you’ll see a basic search bar and a list of the latest and most significant breaches. Simply type in your email address or username, and the site will search the data and present any red flags. You can also search for more sensitive breaches, but only if you take the time to verify your email address. It’s a simple and easy-to-use website and it is clear that its founder Troy Hunt really cares about the security and this sort of white hat work.

Breach Alarm

Breach Alarm is a competitor to Have I Been Pwned. Still, this is a good choice. Together with its free email checking service, it has a paid-for notification and protective services you can use.

This service is more oriented toward small businesses or large families, so you may prefer BreachAlarm, and it’s organized approach to data breaches.

DeHashed

DeHashed works similarly to other options on this list, but instead of focusing on email addresses, DeHashed goes for everything. Want to see if your name appears in any hacked files? You can. You can even check to see if your password is on any lists, although we’d caution putting your password into any place other then login pages where you need it.

This tool is not as easy to use as the others listed and unless you pay, some search results will be censored, but it’s very comprehensive, making it a great alternative tool to see if you have vulnerable accounts.

Sucuri Security Scanner

Sucuri’s Security Scanner is a bit different — it allows you to check an entire website for any signs of bugs, security vulnerabilities, blacklisting, and the presence of hackers. It’s an ideal tool for bloggers and online businesses, but it should be used in addition to other sites that check emails and usernames, just in case.

Sucuri likewise offers a broader suite of security and malware removal services than most, with fees that reach hundreds per year for the professional options. It can be also used as a WordPress plugin and a Chrome extension for better and more consistent monitoring.

How do these data breach detention websites work?

These hack searchers usually work by aggregating data from other sources commonly used to seek hacked data and share it with others. These sources, such as Pastebin, individual leakers, dark web forums can be malicious, which makes it easy for hackers to access breached data such as passwords and login info and try them out. Data breach detention sites, however, use these tricks as a way to do good, allowing you to peek into these databases and see if your info is there. If it is, you can then change your login credentials to protect yourself.

Hope you’ll find this useful. Till next time!