Change Your Passwords: 500+ Million Yahoo Accounts Hacked by "State-Sponsored Actor"

Yahoo announced today that it suffered a breach in late 2014 that resulted in the leak of at least 500 million accounts. In a news release, Yahoo said it believes it was hacked by a "state-sponsored actor."

Data obtained in the hack "may have" included, among other things, names, email addresses, telephone numbers, birth dates, and hashed passwords. Yahoo made the discovery as part of an investigation that remains ongoing. At this point, Yahoo said it has no reason to believe the hacker or hacking group continues to have access to its network. The company added that it is "working closely" with law enforcement officials in this case.

If you have not changed your Yahoo password since 2014, the company advises that you do so now. Additionally, Yahoo will notify people it thinks may have had their accounts compromised. Further, the company said it has also implemented measures to secure user data in the wake of the breach. One example is that the company is "invalidating unencrypted security questions and answers so that they cannot be used to access an account."

Yahoo also said users are encouraged to monitor their accounts for suspicious activity. It's recommended that users change their passwords for non-Yahoo accounts if they use the same password. Yahoo further warned against links from suspicious email accounts.

You can also make use of the Yahoo Account Key authentication tool.

"Online intrusions and thefts by state-sponsored actors have become increasingly common across the technology industry," Yahoo said. "Yahoo and other companies have launched programs to detect and notify users when a company strongly suspects that a state-sponsored actor has targeted an account.

Verizon acquired Yahoo this summer in a deal worth $4.83 billion. According to GameSpot sister site CNET, Verizon said it was made aware of the breach earlier this week, at which time it had "limited information and understanding of the impact."

"We will evaluate as the investigation continues through the lens of overall Verizon interests, including consumers, customers, shareholders, and related communities," Verizon said in a statement.

In March this year, Yahoo announced Yahoo Esports, which it's calling a "new premier destination for delivering professional esports coverage across major games and events."