Data breach · January 2017

Was I in the CloudPets breach?

CloudPets is a maker of internet-connected teddy bears. Its breach happened in January 2017 and exposed 583,503 accounts. It included passwords, family members' names and email addresses. If you had an account there by January 2017, check your address below to see whether it is one of them.

Breach record last updated . Steps read from the government pages at the foot of this page.

01

What happened?

The company makes toys that record the voices of children and send them to family. In January 2017 its database was left open to the public, was downloaded by outsiders and became the subject of 3 ransom demands. The data held email addresses and bcrypt password hashes, and the wider system also held children's names and links to photos and voice recordings.

Organisation
CloudPets, a maker of internet-connected teddy bears (cloudpets.com)
When it happened
January 2017
Added to monitored breach databases
27 February 2017
Accounts in the data
583,503
What was exposed
passwords, family members' names and email addresses
02

What was exposed, and what does it mean for me?

  • Your passwordpasswords

    The password for this account was in the data, either as written or in a stored form that can often be reversed when the password is short or common. Anyone with the list can try it on your email, bank and shopping accounts.

  • Identity detailsfamily members' names

    Family details are a common answer to security questions, and they do not change.

  • Your email addressemail addresses

    Expect messages that look like they come from this service or another one you use, written to get you to click a link or sign in on a fake page.

03

What should I do now?

In this order, for what this breach exposed.

1. Change the password, and every reuse of it

  • Change your CloudPets password if the account still exists. Then change the same password on every other account where you used it, starting with your email.
  • Use a different password for each account. A password manager makes that practical: it creates long passwords and remembers them for you.
  • Turn on a second sign-in step, such as a code from an app or a security key, for your email, bank and social accounts. Your email comes first, because every password reset goes to it.

2. In the US: freeze your credit at all three bureaus

  • Place a credit freeze with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. It is free to place and to lift, and it does not affect your credit score.
  • If you would rather not freeze, a fraud alert lasts one year. You ask one bureau and it tells the other two.
  • If someone uses your details, report it at IdentityTheft.gov to get a recovery plan.

3. In Canada: check your credit file and lock it

  • Get your credit report from Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada. Both give it free online.
  • In Ontario, both bureaus must offer a security freeze free of charge, and each bureau is a separate request.
  • If you live in Quebec or Ontario, Equifax Canada will lock your credit report at no charge, online, by phone or by mail. Ask TransUnion Canada separately.
  • If your details are used to open an account, call your bank, report it to both bureaus, report it to your local police and get a file number, then report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (1-888-495-8501).

4. Expect phishing

  • Be wary of messages that urge you to act fast, ask for personal details, or link to an address that is slightly off.
  • If a message might be genuine, do not use its links or phone numbers. Go to the site by typing its address yourself.
04

Is my address in it?

Enter your email address. We check that one address against monitored breach databases and show which breaches list it and what each exposed.

No account needed. We keep the address you check, when, and how many breach records it was found in, to prevent abuse, until you ask us to delete it. Privacy