CONSUMER ALERT: Protect Yourself after Yahoo Data Breach

PHOENIX – Attorney General Mark Brnovich is urging Arizonans to take action to avoid identity theft after Yahoo announced a major data breach affecting one billion user accounts.

The stolen Yahoo user account information may have included names, email addresses, telephone numbers, dates of birth, encrypted passwords, and encrypted or unencrypted security questions and answers. Yahoo indicates the stolen information did not include passwords in clear text, payment card data, or bank account information.

"The magnitude of this data breach is alarming," said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. "Arizonans affected by this data breach should immediately protect their online accounts by changing their passwords and security questions. Hackers could gain access to other online accounts by using that stolen personal information."

Consumers Affected Should Immediately Take the Following Steps to Avoid Becoming a Victim of ID Theft:

  • Review all of your online accounts for suspicious activity.
  • Change all of your passwords and security questions and answers for any online accounts.
  • Use strong passwords. A password should be at least 6 characters long, unique to each account, and contain upper and lower case letters, symbols, and numbers.
  • Avoid clicking links or downloading attachments from suspicious emails.
  • Be cautious of unsolicited emails asking for personal information.
  • Sign up for two-step email verification which requires a password and another step to verify your identity.

Consumers can visit the Yahoo Account Security Issues FAQs page for details about the breach.
 
More online information on how to protect yourself from identity theft.

If you believe you have been the victim of consumer fraud, please contact the Attorney General’s Office Consumer Information & Complaints in Phoenix at (602) 542-5763, in Tucson at (520) 628-6504, or outside the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas at 1 (800) 352-8431. Consumers can also file complaints online by visiting the Arizona Attorney General’s Office website.