Check If Your Email Was in a Data Breach
A free, one minute check tells you which known data breaches included your email address, so you know which passwords to change first.
The tip
Go to Have I Been Pwned, type your email address, and press the button. In seconds you will see which known data breaches included that address.
Why it matters
When a website is breached, the leaked email and password pairs are often tried on other sites. If you reused that password anywhere, those accounts are at risk too.
What to do with the result
- For each breach listed, change your password on that service.
- Change it anywhere you reused it. This matters more than the original site.
- Turn on extra protection for your email, bank and main accounts: two step verification, or better, passkeys.
- Sign up for alerts on the same site so you hear about future breaches.
Only ever type your email address into a breach checker. Never enter a password into a site that offers to test it.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to type my email into a breach checker?
Use a well known service such as Have I Been Pwned, and only ever enter your email address. Never enter a password into a site that offers to check it for you.
My email appears in a breach. Was I hacked?
Not necessarily. It means a service you used leaked data that included your email. Change the password for that service, and anywhere else you reused it.
What should I do next?
Change reused passwords, turn on two step verification or passkeys for important accounts, and use a password manager so every account has a unique password.