LinkedIn Hacked: 117 Million User Passwords For Sale In Dark Web [VIDEO]

Back in 2012, LinkedIn admitted that about 6.5 million user accounts were hacked in a massive data breach. As bad as the numbers were then, it turns out that the data breach was a lot worse, with the professional social networking firm announcing on Wednesday that about 117 million of users were actually hacked back in 2012.

The social network admitted to the massive data breach after a hacker, known in the Dark Web as "Peace," offered the stolen data for sale. For the ton of stolen passwords and accounts, the hacker was asking for 5 Bitcoin, which converts to about $2,300.

When the data breach was first reported in 2012, LinkedIn promptly changed the passwords of the 6.5 million users which were initially reported to have been affected by the data breach. The professional social networking firm also advised all of its users to change their passwords after the incident.

Despite this, however, there is a very real possibility that some of the 117 million users, the majority of which were never informed that their accounts were breached, did not bolster their LinkedIn accounts' security when they were advised to change their passwords four years ago. Thus, some accounts might still be vulnerable to this day.

With the massive amount of data being up for sale on the Dark Web, LinkedIn has announced that it is currently trying to determine the specific accounts that were included in the hack. The firm has also asserted that it is in the process of notifying users and resetting accounts once more.

With LinkedIn's massive data breach in mind, a number of cyber security analysts have stated that the incident must serve as a reminder for social media users to update their passwords on a regular basis. After all, if an account gets its password reset and updated every few months, there is a very small chance that hackers would be able to take advantage of any personal or private data.

At the end of the day, the security of accounts usually boils down to the users' responsibility and constant vigilance.