A malicious actor scraped data from 700 million LinkedIn users and advertised it for sale online. The leaked dataset includes information from LinkedIn and potentially supplemented data from other sources.

What was leaked?

The exposed data includes:

Email addresses
Full names
Phone numbers
Physical addresses
Geolocation records
LinkedIn usernames and profile URLs
Professional and personal background information
Gender information
Other social media usernames

Why this matters

While LinkedIn profiles are largely public, many users restrict visibility to direct connections or their network. This breach exposed all public information regardless of privacy settings, plus sensitive personal data like phone numbers and precise location information.

The exposure creates opportunities for targeted attacks against employees. Since most LinkedIn users publicly list their employer, attackers can likely deduce business email formats (firstname.lastname@companyname), giving them access to approximately 700 million active corporate email addresses.

Business risks

Organisations should expect increased spam and phishing attempts. The greater concern involves spear phishing: targeted attacks using personal details from the leaked data to craft convincing deception.

Attackers could impersonate executives to manipulate employees into unauthorised payments or access sensitive systems. The combination of professional history and technology information creates opportunities for sophisticated social engineering campaigns.

Protective measures

Technology solutions

Email security gateways for spam and malware filtering
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) to prevent credential misuse
Antivirus solutions on all business devices
Robust backup and disaster recovery plans against ransomware

Organisational practices

Define clear payment authorisation procedures requiring voice confirmation
Implement cyber insurance coverage
Provide security awareness training for staff

A layered defence combining technology, processes, and employee education provides the strongest protection.