Answers to common questions about data breaches and your online security.
A data breach is an incident where secure, private, or confidential information is intentionally or unintentionally released to an untrusted environment. This typically happens when hackers steal databases containing sensitive user information.
Simply go to our homepage and enter your email address into our search tool. We will securely check our extensive database of known breaches to see if your email has been exposed.
Don't panic! Immediately change the passwords for the affected accounts. If you used the same password on other websites, change them there too. We highly recommend using a password manager and enabling 2-Factor Authentication (2FA).
Absolutely not. Your privacy is paramount. All searches are processed anonymously in memory and never written to our database.
Yes. Pwned Checker is completely safe. We never store your data, never sell your information, and all pages use HTTPS encryption. We are an independent, educational cybersecurity tool built for awareness — not for commercial data collection.
A password leak happens when a company's database is hacked and user credentials are stolen and published online. Hackers then sell these on the dark web. According to CERT-In (India's national cybersecurity agency), millions of Indian users' credentials are exposed every year through such incidents. Using a unique password for every website is your strongest defense.
Two-factor authentication (2FA) adds a second layer of security beyond your password. Even if a hacker steals your password, they cannot access your account without the second factor — like a one-time code sent to your phone. Google, Microsoft, and cybersecurity experts globally recommend enabling 2FA on all important accounts including email, banking, and social media.
Hackers obtain passwords through several common methods: phishing emails that trick you into entering your login details on fake websites, data breaches from other services you use, malware on your device that records keystrokes, brute-force attacks on weak passwords, and purchasing stolen credentials from dark web marketplaces. Using a unique, strong password for every account — managed with a password manager — is your best defense.
The dark web is a hidden part of the internet not indexed by standard search engines like Google. Stolen data from breaches — including email addresses, passwords, credit card numbers, and phone numbers — is frequently bought and sold there. Pwned Checker cross-references its database to alert you if your information has appeared in known dark web data dumps.
Yes. Many data breaches include phone numbers alongside email addresses. You can enter your phone number on the Pwned Checker homepage to see if it appears in known breach databases. This is especially critical in India, where mobile numbers are directly linked to UPI payments, Aadhaar, and banking apps.
A combo list is a large file containing millions of email-password or username-password pairs compiled from multiple data breaches. Cybercriminals use combo lists for credential stuffing attacks — automatically trying these stolen combinations on other websites like banking portals, email providers, and social media platforms to hijack accounts.