Houzz 2018 Data Breach
ObscureIQ Breach Intelligence
Low SeverityWebsite / service breach
Houzz Home Design & Renovation Platform Breach (2018): 51 Million User Accounts Including Passwords & Social Media Profiles Exposed
Home design and renovation platform.
Verified by ObscureIQ Intelligence
34/100Breach Risk Index
10Data Value
25Market Recency
512dSince Breach
Breach Intelligence Summary
Entity: Houzz · Actor: Unknown · Sources: 7 references
Attack: Unknown
Profile: Platform · Home design and renovation services · Marketplace + content platform · Global
Timeline: Breach (2018-05-23) · Indexed (Dec 01, 2024) · Year (2018)
Exposure: 51.7M records · 7 fields: Email Address, Full Name, Geographic Location, IP Address, Password, Social Media Profile, Username
Status: Confirmed
Executive Summary
Houzz, the home design and renovation platform, suffered a data breach in mid-2018 that exposed the personal information of approximately 48 to 51.7 million users. The company discovered the breach later that year but did not notify affected members until February 2019. The attack vector remains unknown, and no specific threat actor has been publicly identified. The exposed data included names, email addresses, usernames, IP addresses, geographic locations, and passwords stored as salted bcrypt hashes. Some users had linked social media profiles exposed in place of passwords, depending on how they authenticated to the service. This combination of data is particularly sensitive in the home renovation context: geographic and profile information can reveal where someone lives, the value of their home, and their planned spending on renovation work, creating openings for phishing, contractor impersonation, and targeted fraud. Houzz notified affected users by email and required password resets for impacted accounts. No class-action settlement or significant regulatory action specific to this breach has been publicly documented. Affected individuals remain at elevated risk of credential-stuffing attacks if they reused their Houzz password on other services, as well as targeted scams that exploit their home improvement activity.
ObscureIQ assessment: High risk of phishing, contractor impersonation, wire fraud, and household targeting. Home-renovation context can also reveal residence value, planned work, and spending intent.
Breach Impact
In mid-2018 Houzz suffered a breach that was not discovered by the company until later that year and disclosed to users in February 2019. The exposed data for approximately 48 million users included email addresses, usernames, IP addresses, geographic locations, passwords stored as salted bcrypt hashes, and linked social media profile information. Houzz notified affected users by email and required password resets for impacted accounts. No class-action settlement or significant regulatory action specific to this breach has been prominently documented in public sources.
About Houzz
Houzz is an online platform for home design, renovation, and professional services, connecting homeowners with interior designers, architects, and contractors while hosting an extensive catalog of home design inspiration content. The company is headquartered in Palo Alto and operates as a private company. It generates revenue through professional subscription services and advertising aimed at home improvement trade professionals.
Why They Hold Your Data
Home-design marketplaces collect customer identity, addresses, project inquiries, payment-adjacent records, and contractor or vendor interactions tied to renovation and interior-design workflows.
Recent Developments
Houzz has continued to operate as a private company focused on its professional marketplace and home design content platform. The company underwent significant workforce reductions in 2023 as part of a cost reduction effort. No major ownership or structural changes have been reported in the most recent period.
Data Points Exposed
7 verified field types
Email Address
Full Name High
Geographic Location
IP Address
Password Critical
Social Media Profile
Username
Field names are shown in full for clarity and search visibility. Canonical machine keys are emitted only in this page’s structured data.
Exploitation & Downstream Threats
Threat Activity:Critical
Primary downstream threats:
- Credential stuffing against reused passwords across other platforms
- Targeted phishing campaigns using exposed email addresses
- Doxxing risk from physical address exposure
- Social media account targeting and impersonation
Threat vectors:
- Phishing, credential stuffing & account takeover
- Name-based social engineering
- Pattern-of-life analysis & physical surveillance
- Geolocation & account flagging
- Credential stuffing & account takeover
- Account impersonation & social graph harvesting
- Cross-platform tracking & credential stuffing
Recommended Actions
If you believe your information may be included:
Change Reused Passwords
Update this account and anywhere you reused the password; use a manager.
Enable MFA Everywhere
Turn on multi-factor authentication on email first, then financial accounts.
Report & Recover
If you spot misuse, start an official recovery plan and report fraud.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happened in the Houzz breach?▾
Houzz, the home design and renovation platform, suffered a data breach in mid-2018 that exposed the personal information of approximately 48 to 51.7 million users. The company discovered the breach later that year but did not notify affected members until February 2019. The attack vector remains…
What data was exposed?▾
Verified fields include Email Address, Full Name, Geographic Location, IP Address, Password, Social Media Profile, Username.
What should I do if I was affected?▾
Change reused passwords, enable MFA, and (if identity or financial data is involved) freeze your credit and monitor your accounts.
Sources & References
Every claim on this page is traceable. This breach draws on:
Breach Index
Breach Index
Cross-source
9ghz
Cross-source
BreachForums_Official_Index
Cross-source
DataViper.io
Cross-source
leakfind
ObscureIQ Intelligence
ObscureIQ proprietary analysis
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