We Heart It 2013 Data Breach
ObscureIQ Breach Intelligence
Low SeverityWebsite / service breach
We Heart It Visual Social Network Breach (2013): 8.6 Million User Accounts Including Passwords Exposed
Image-based social network for sharing inspiring content.
Verified by ObscureIQ Intelligence
14/100Breach Risk Index
6Data Value
10Market Recency
3189dSince Breach
Breach Intelligence Summary
Entity: We Heart It · Actor: Unknown · Sources: 7 references
Attack: Unknown
Profile: Platform · Image sharing, visual bookmarking, and social networking · Image-based social network · Global
Timeline: Breach (2013-11-03) · Indexed (Oct 14, 2017) · Year (2013)
Exposure: 8.6M records · 3 fields: Email Address, Password, Username
Status: Confirmed
Executive Summary
In November 2013, image-sharing social network We Heart It suffered a data breach affecting 8.6 million accounts, which only came to light in October 2017. Exposed data included usernames, email addresses, and password hashes (about 80% salted SHA-256, the rest unsalted MD5) for accounts created between 2008 and 2013.
ObscureIQ assessment: Exposure enables harassment, phishing, and profiling based on aesthetic preferences, identity signals, and social relationships. Saved-image behavior can also reveal mental health, body image, or lifestyle interests.
Breach Impact
The unsalted-MD5 subset is readily cracked and the SHA-256 subset is weak by modern standards, exposing reused credentials to stuffing attacks.
About We Heart It
We Heart It is an image-based social network where users curate and share inspirational images and build themed collections.
Why They Hold Your Data
Image-based social networks collect user accounts, emails, saved images, social graphs, profile data, and engagement history tied to visual bookmarking and identity expression.
Recent Developments
After the breach came to light, We Heart It re-hashed all passwords with bcrypt and urged users to reset credentials.
Data Points Exposed
3 verified field types
Email Address
Password Critical
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:Moderate
Primary downstream threats:
- Credential stuffing against reused passwords across other platforms
- Targeted phishing campaigns using exposed email addresses
Threat vectors:
- Phishing, credential stuffing & account takeover
- Credential stuffing & account takeover
- 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 We Heart It breach?▾
In November 2013, image-sharing social network We Heart It suffered a data breach affecting 8.6 million accounts, which only came to light in October 2017. Exposed data included usernames, email addresses, and password hashes (about 80% salted SHA-256, the rest unsalted MD5) for accounts created…
What data was exposed?▾
Verified fields include Email Address, Password, 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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