Shadi.com 2016.0 Data Breach
ObscureIQ Breach Intelligence
Low SeverityWebsite / service breach
Shadi.com Muslim Matrimonial Platform Breach (2016): 2 Million User Accounts Including Plaintext Passwords Exposed
Matrimonial matching site (Muslim community).
Verified by ObscureIQ Intelligence
34/100Breach Risk Index
25Data Value
10Market Recency
1449dSince Breach
Breach Intelligence Summary
Entity: Shadi.com · Actor: Unknown · Sources: 10 references
Attack: Unknown
Profile: Platform · Matrimonial and matchmaking services · Online relationship platform · India / Global
Timeline: Breach (2016-07-09) · Indexed (Jul 20, 2022) · Year (2016.0)
Exposure: 2.0M records · 2 fields: Email Address, Password
Status: Confirmed
Executive Summary
In July 2016, the matrimonial site Shadi.com suffered a data breach exposing about 2.03 million member records, comprising email addresses and passwords stored as MD5 hashes alongside their plaintext equivalents. HIBP marks the breach as sensitive and it is not publicly searchable.
ObscureIQ assessment: Extremely sensitive. Exposure enables stalking, harassment, reputational harm, extortion, and identity linkage around family expectations, religion, caste, and relationship status.
Breach Impact
Plaintext-equivalent passwords enable immediate account access and stuffing; association with a religious matrimonial site adds sensitivity (inferred religion/relationship status).
About Shadi.com
Shadi.com is a web-based Muslim marriage-introduction service that connects men and women in the UK, United States, Canada, and other countries who are seeking marriage. It operates in the matrimonial/matchmaking category rather than casual dating, and historically positioned itself around protecting member contact information to prevent unwanted communication. It should not be confused with Shaadi.com, the larger India-based People Group matrimonial platform; the two are unrelated entities that share a similar name. As a matchmaking service, Shadi.com collects email addresses, account credentials, profile details, and relationship-intent information tied to a religiously identifiable user base.
Why They Hold Your Data
Matrimonial platforms collect highly sensitive profile data, family details, religion or caste-related attributes, photos, messages, and relationship-intent records tied to matchmaking workflows.
Recent Developments
No significant public developments have been reported for Shadi.com since the 2016 breach; the service has maintained a low public profile and issued no substantial breach communications of record. The breach data continued to circulate through breach-aggregation and credential-search services (Have I Been Pwned, LeakedSource, and numerous mirror catalogues) in the years following disclosure, and HIBP added the dataset to its index in July 2022, flagging it as sensitive and not publicly searchable. Because the exposed credentials were stored in plaintext, the data remains directly usable for credential stuffing wherever affected members reused passwords, keeping the record operationally relevant nearly a decade later.
Data Points Exposed
2 verified field types
Email Address
Password Critical
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
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 Shadi.com breach?▾
In July 2016, the matrimonial site Shadi.com suffered a data breach exposing about 2.03 million member records, comprising email addresses and passwords stored as MD5 hashes alongside their plaintext equivalents. HIBP marks the breach as sensitive and it is not publicly searchable.
What data was exposed?▾
Verified fields include Email Address, Password.
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
Cross-source
9ghz
Cross-source
BreachDirectory
Cross-source
BreachForums_Official_Index
Cross-source
BreachNet.pw
Cross-source
Cit0day
Cross-source
DataViper.io
Cross-source
HackNotice.com
Cross-source
Hacked-Emails (+8)
ObscureIQ Intelligence
ObscureIQ proprietary analysis
Protect Yourself
Check If You're Affected
Enter your email to check whether your data appears in this breach. We’ll send a 6-digit code to confirm it’s your address.
Get Free Breach Alerts
Be the first to know when new breaches are disclosed. Free forever — confirm your email with a 6-digit code.
High-Risk? Get an Exposure Audit
Executives, public figures, and high-visibility operators can receive tailored exposure intelligence and hardening guidance.
Request Consultation