If you are having a Yahoo account, it must have been hacked, as further investigations into Yahoo 2013 data theft have revealed all accounts on the Yahoo network were hacked in the data theft.
On Tuesday, Yahoo said all 3 billion of its accounts were hacked in the 2013 data theft, tripling earlier estimate of the size of the largest breach in history, in a disclosure that legal representatives said sharply increased the legal exposure of its new owner, Verizon.
According to the legal practitioners at a court hearing, the news expands the likely number and claims of class action lawsuits by shareholders and Yahoo account holders.
Already, Yahoo, the early face of the internet for many in the world is being faced by at least 41 consumer class-action lawsuits in US federal and state courts, according to the company’s securities filing in May.
According to a lawyer representing some of the affected Yahoo users, a federal judge who allowed the case to go forward still had asked for more information to justify his clients’ claims.
“I think we have those facts now,” the lawyer, John Yanchunis, said, adding “It’s really mind-numbing when you think about it”.
Yahoo said last December that data from more than 1 billion accounts was compromised in 2013, the largest of a series of thefts that forced Yahoo to cut the price of its assets in a sale to Verizon.
However, on Tuesday, Yahoo changed the narratives revealing: “recently obtained new intelligence” showed all user accounts had been affected.
The company said the investigation indicated that the stolen information did not include passwords in clear text, payment card data, or bank account information.
But the information was protected with outdated, easy-to-crack encryption, according to academic experts.
It also included security questions and backup email addresses, which could make it easier to break into other accounts held by the users.
The new revelation follows months of scrutiny by Yahoo, Verizon, cyber-security firms and law enforcement that failed to identify the full scope of the 2013 hack.
A Yahoo official emphasized Tuesday that the 3 billion figure included many accounts that were opened but that were never, or only briefly, used.
Many Yahoo users have multiple accounts, so far fewer than 3 billion were affected, but the theft ranks as the largest to date, and a costly one for the internet pioneer.
The company said it was sending email notifications to additional affected user accounts.