Genesis Market
What Happened
In April 2023, the stolen identity marketplace Genesis Market was shut down by the FBI and a coalition of law enforcement agencies across the globe in "Operation Cookie Monster". The service traded in "browser fingerprints" which enabled criminals to impersonate victims and access their online services. As many of the impacted accounts did not include email addresses, "8M" is merely an approximation intended to indicate scale. Other personal data compromised by the service included names, addresses and credit card information, although not all individuals had each of these fields exposed.
Compromised Data
Recommended Actions
Change Your Password
If you haven't changed your password on this service since the breach, do so immediately.
Enable Two-Factor Authentication
If 2FA is supported, add an extra layer of security to your account.
Check Other Accounts
If you used the same password elsewhere, change those too.
Monitor for Suspicious Activity
Watch for unusual login attempts, spam and phishing emails.
Breach Overview
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Affected Accounts:
8 million
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Breach Occurred:
April 2023
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Added to HIBP:
5 Apr 2023
Breach Classification
HIBP enables you to discover if your account was exposed in most of the data breaches by directly searching the system. However, certain breaches are particularly sensitive in that someone's presence in the breach may adversely impact them if others are able to find that they were a member of the site.
A sensitive data breach can only be searched by the verified owner of the email address being searched for. This is done via the notification system which involves sending a verification email to the address with a unique link.
There are presently 74 sensitive breaches in the system including Adult FriendFinder, Ashley Madison, and others.
Recommended Actions
Change Your Password
If you haven't changed your Genesis Market password since 2023, do so immediately.
Enable Two-Factor Authentication
Add an extra layer of security to your account.
Check Other Accounts
If you used the same password elsewhere, change those too.
Monitor for Suspicious Activity
Watch for unusual login attempts or messages from your account.
