Data breach · March 2016

Was I in the Staminus breach?

Staminus is a DDoS protection service. Its breach happened in March 2016 and exposed 26,815 accounts. It included passwords, credit cards, email addresses and IP addresses (where you connected from) and 2 other kinds of detail. If you had an account there by March 2016, 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.

Check your address Read the steps
01

What happened?

In March 2016 the service was heavily hacked, causing a service outage of more than 20 hours. Customer logins with MD5 password hashes that had no salt were disclosed, along with support tickets, card numbers and further sensitive data, and the data was released to the public. The company is no longer operating.

Organisation
Staminus, a DDoS protection service (staminus.net)
When it happened
March 2016
Added to monitored breach databases
5 October 2017
Accounts in the data
26,815
What was exposed
passwords, credit cards, email addresses, IP addresses (where you connected from), support tickets and usernames

The breach record cites a public report on krebsonsecurity.com.

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.

  • Payment card detailscredit cards

    A full card number with its code can be used to buy things. Part of a card number cannot, but it makes a scam call sound like your bank.

  • 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.

  • Other detailsIP addresses (where you connected from), support tickets and usernames

    On their own these carry less risk, but they make a scam message sound more personal.

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 Staminus 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. Deal with the card

  • Call the number on the back of your card, tell the bank about the breach and ask for a new card number.
  • Check each statement for charges you do not recognise.
  • If a caller asks you for a full card number or a code sent to your phone, hang up and call the number on your card.

3. 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.

4. 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).

5. 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

Sources

Where does this come from?

Other breaches from 2016

All breaches Breaches from 2016 Breaches that exposed passwordsBreaches that exposed payment card details