Huge databases containing billions of online account passwords and personal information circulate on the Dark Web. With the new free tools from pCloud, you can check if you are affected.
Every day, billions of pieces of personal information are shared on Dark Web forums accessed by hackers – often for a fee. No wonder 90% of Internet users are afraid of having their passwords hacked! This is a serious problem, especially in the current context. Indeed, since February 2022, the number of cyberattacks against companies or public bodies has increased by 140% in Europe, making France fifth most targeted country for ransomware in the world. And with the acceleration of the digital transition, this may not improve! These hacks are often due to passwords that are too weak – which are also reused on other accounts – and could often have been avoided if the basic security instructions – long, complex password, meaningless, impersonal and unique – had been applied.
Also, on the occasion of World Password Day (World Password Day) which will take place on May 4, 2023, pCloud, a password manager and an online storage and file sharing service for individuals and businesses, provides Internet users with two free online tools: a Password Checker and a Data Breach Checker. A way to raise awareness of good digital practices to secure your data!
pCloud Password Checker: Choosing Strong Credentials
According a study by pCloud, more than one in two people trust their memory to store their passwords. Therefore, these must be easy to remember – they are either common words or information from his personal life – and are therefore easy to guess. Worse still, 78% of the infamous Generation Z – people born between 1997 and 2010 – use a single, unique password for all of their online accounts. That’s a very bad idea !
THE Password Checker proposed by pCloud makes it possible to know the level of security of each password. Just enter a password in the search bar to find out how secure it is and how quickly it can be cracked – the company does not store submitted passwords on its servers. The tool also gives advice for creating strong passwords and even offers to generate them.
pCloud Data Breach Checker: Find out if your email address is compromised
But just because user accounts are protected with strong passwords doesn’t mean their personal data is secure. Indeed, cybercriminals have a habit of targeting major platforms, such as Deezer, Dropbox, Canva, LastPass and Twitter, in order to steal sensitive data directly from their servers. All the information quickly ends up for sale on the Dark Web and is then used to carry out various cybercriminal actions and campaigns. The problem is that Internet users are not always aware and do not necessarily realize the extent of the violation.
Also, the Data Breach Checker allows you to know if an email address has been stolen following a hack. Just enter the latter in the search bar to find out if it was part of one or more data breaches, and on which platform. Generally, some personal information also leaks: name, date of birth, IP address, geolocation, passwords, address, phone number, credit card… Note that pCloud tools are not the only ones available. Similar ones can be found at CyberNews and Have I Been Pwned? – which could be translated as “has my password been hacked?” (see our article). We strongly recommend that you see if you are concerned and, if so, take the necessary measures to protect yourself!