Massive X data leak affects over 200 million users.
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My email provider allows for unlimited aliases. So, while I have 600+ email addresses, emails to them all end up in the same mailbox.
I do this too. The unique email address I create for each is identifiable to the place I'm using it. This has other benefits. If an organization you created and account with sells or has a data breech you know exactly which company it was when you start receiving spam or phishing email directed to that address. This is also nice because you can "black hole" that email address and all the spam goes with it even future spam not sent yet.
Exactly! I add a random string to each email address, too, so you can’t just guess other addresses. So, it’s usually something similar to
[email protected]. And, whenever a breach happens, I’ll generate a new random part and set that as my email address and invalidate the old one. Until the next breach. (Looking at you, LinkedIn…) -
Wait, so you literally have hundreds of accounts? How do you manage them all?
My email provider will auto-generate aliases with no limit, and I also subscribe to Mozilla Firefox Relay, which allows me to invent email addresses on the fly and have them relay emails to my inbox. The advantage of the Firefox Relay is that it isn't tied to the email provider so if I switch provider the aliases can still work.
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That's re-victimization. People do people stuff, like using social networks. Furthermore, the database probably goes as far as previous being bought and renamed by Musk. So... you're note being fair.
I'm fairy sure the guy above said "use X" not use social media. X is a particularly shitty platform.
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A self-proclaimed data enthusiast calling themselves ‘ThinkingOne’ has made a huge database containing 201 million pieces of user data from X freely available. The data is said to have come from two previous leaks and includes email addresses, locations and profile data of users of the social media platform.
That’s like, 400 actual non-bot accounts. Nobody is safe anymore!
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Exactly! I add a random string to each email address, too, so you can’t just guess other addresses. So, it’s usually something similar to
[email protected]. And, whenever a breach happens, I’ll generate a new random part and set that as my email address and invalidate the old one. Until the next breach. (Looking at you, LinkedIn…)That is clever!
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Wait, so you literally have hundreds of accounts? How do you manage them all?
This is what I do as well. I purchased my own custom domain name and run aliases off it using Addy. So as an example, an email for an online account would look like: ‘[email protected]’
Then I feed these accounts into a password manager so I don’t have to remember them.
All the aliases forward mail directly to my main inbox. Companies never see what my real address is. If I get spam, I know which company either sold my data or leaked my data. I can then take action by simply turning off that email alias and then spinning up a new one.
The best thing about owning your custom domain is that you’re in control and never have to change your email addresses. If I want to move to a new email provider, I can easily do that. The process, simplified:
- Buy a domain name
- Sign up for an email account at Tuta, Mailbox, etc.
- Set up your custom domain at that provider.
- Go to your Domain provider and update your MX records so that it syncs with the email provider.
- if you want to switch email providers, get a new one and then update your MX records to point to the new provider.
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That's re-victimization. People do people stuff, like using social networks. Furthermore, the database probably goes as far as previous being bought and renamed by Musk. So... you're note being fair.
The actual data compromise happened sometime before July 2022, months before Elon's purchase of Twitter happened. Telling people they shouldn't have registered their real phone numbers to Twitter in 2015 or whatever isn't really a helpful argument to make today.
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Bluesky will be in the same boat given enough time. Mastodon is the only proper stand-in for twitter.
OK but it's not even remotely close today.
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A self-proclaimed data enthusiast calling themselves ‘ThinkingOne’ has made a huge database containing 201 million pieces of user data from X freely available. The data is said to have come from two previous leaks and includes email addresses, locations and profile data of users of the social media platform.
Quick everyone do their banking on it!
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A self-proclaimed data enthusiast calling themselves ‘ThinkingOne’ has made a huge database containing 201 million pieces of user data from X freely available. The data is said to have come from two previous leaks and includes email addresses, locations and profile data of users of the social media platform.
So what is that, like 6 or 7 people?
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A self-proclaimed data enthusiast calling themselves ‘ThinkingOne’ has made a huge database containing 201 million pieces of user data from X freely available. The data is said to have come from two previous leaks and includes email addresses, locations and profile data of users of the social media platform.
I think they mean 40 million users and 160 million bots.
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Anyone know where these files where originally posted?
I was just about to ask. I know that there was a clearnet site for data breaches but that's since been taken by the DOJ.
I imagine there's an onion site but my onion experience is very little to know where to even begin to look. My searches on torch found very little.
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Anyone know where these files where originally posted?
I would like to know this too but all I see is many variations of the same joke in this comment section.
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Mastodon is much better and resistant to enshittification. Bluesky is not federated or decentralized.
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I think they mean 40 million users and 160 million bots.
Seems like a dedicated person might be able to prove that. Go through the available data and see what % of leaked accounts actually point to a real person, or even a unique person. If it's mostly bots you'd see that pretty quick
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Wait, so you literally have hundreds of accounts? How do you manage them all?
Proton Pass has a feature exactly for that. You can create unlimited number of aliases, and kill ones that bacame compromised.
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A self-proclaimed data enthusiast calling themselves ‘ThinkingOne’ has made a huge database containing 201 million pieces of user data from X freely available. The data is said to have come from two previous leaks and includes email addresses, locations and profile data of users of the social media platform.
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So what is that, like 6 or 7 people?
It also includes the people that deleted their Twitter accounts following the acquisition. I'm one of those people and I'm especially annoyed because I only used that blasted app only to register to some giveaways when I was in middle school. I have since discontinued that email account, but still.
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Yes, and Bitwarden+SimpleLogin. Bitwarden to keep track of login info including the alias that is used for that site. SimpleLogin is where the aliasing is actually handled, they have a decent UI for enabling/disabling or generating reverse aliases (for outgoing emails) when needed.
It does take a little more effort to manage it, but it’s worth the payoff. I’ve been using this setup for about 9 months now and I finally got my first spam email a week ago. I looked at the address it was sent to, it was a site I ordered something from about 6 months ago. I sent them a message letting them know that either someone at their company is selling customer info to scammers or their database has been leaked, then I shut off the alias.
I sent them a message letting them know that either someone at their company is selling customer info to scammers or their database has been leaked, then I shut off the alias.
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