Leaked data from a closed hacker forum contains email addresses and passwords of 500,000 Belgians. Special vigilance is required.

The data comes from a RaidForums database. This is an online marketplace in the dark corners of the internet where hackers can sell data stolen through cyber attacks. Although the platform was shut down by the FBI and Europol last year, a collective of hackers was still able to collect and publish data. The leaked data also includes the company addresses and passwords of 500,000 Belgians.

VRTNWS was able to view this list and came across account data from VRT itself and the universities KUL and UGent, among other things. Other names of organizations are not mentioned. They may also be older passwords or inactive accounts since RaidForums has not been active for a year. But if you haven’t changed your password for a long time, you can be at great risk.

To ensure your account stays properly protected, it’s a good idea to set a new password (read the basic rules again here) and make sure you don’t reuse your company password for personal accounts. Also, there’s no better time than now to enable MFA if you haven’t already. With MFA, you still have a stick behind the door in case hackers run away with your credentials.

More and more phishing

A leaked email address also makes you more vulnerable spearfishing. Finally, the criminal can associate a name and employer with the address and tailor a phishing scheme, increasing the likelihood that you will fall for it. Figures from Febelfin show that phishing in Belgium has again increased significantly in the past year.

Seventy percent of Belgians had received a phishing message via email or SMS in the last six months. Eight percent actually fell into the trap. In particular, the energy crisis and inflation were worthwhile issues to respond to. Overall, the successful phishing attempts amounted to a volume of 40 million euros, the most lucrative booty in years.

Phishers continue to invent and refine their techniques. New trends in cybercrime are mimicking the voices of acquaintances, which today’s AI technology works very well with, they are also looking for ways to make physical contact with the victim. To combat phishing, the government is working with the CCB and telecom operators on phishing filters that will warn people when they click on a fraudulent link.

Receive a suspicious email or SMS? You can report this via suspicious@safeonweb.be. CCB received six million reports in 2022.