Hacked | Data of 22 million Unacademy users on sale for USD 2,000

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India’s online learning platform, Unacademy was hacked and has faced data breach. The security firm Cyble Inc has confirmed that data of 22 million Unacademy users are available on sale now. “A hacker is offering the user database, containing 2,19,09,707 records for USD 2,000.”

Users can check their account status

The security firm has acquired the database and added the user records to its data breach monitoring service. This can be used by millions of Unacademy users to determine whether their account was hacked or not.

Hacked records

According to the reports, the breached records include:

  • Usernames
  • Passwords (SHA-256)
  • Date Joined
  • Last Login Date
  • Email Addresses
  • First and Last Names
  • Account Profile (staff member/A superuser)
  • Account Status (whether the account is active)

Some users were reached by BleepingComputer to verify whether the hacked data is authentic. The hackers have stolen much more than just the user database, BleepingComputer confirmed.

Unacademy’s stringent encryption methods

“We have been closely monitoring the situation and can confirm that basic information related to around 11 million learners has been compromised,” stated Hemesh Singh, Co-founder and CTO, Unacademy. However, we would like to assure our learners that no sensitive information such as financial data, location or passwords has been breached. We follow stringent encryption methods using the PBKDF2 algorithm with a SHA256 hash, making it highly implausible for anyone to access the learner passwords. We also follow an OTP based login system that provides an additional layer of security to our learners. We are doing a complete background check and will be addressing any potential security loophole to further our efforts of ensuring a robust security mechanism. Data security and privacy of our learners is of utmost importance to us and we will be in communication with our learners to keep them updated on the progress.

Online Learning Platform scales success peaks

Reportedly, Unacademy’s value is over USD 500 million. The company succeeded in raising as much as USD 110 million in funding from General Atlantic, Sequoia, and Facebook.

According to the officials,, over 300,000 students have benefited from over 2,400 online lessons and specialised courses available on Unacademy to clear different competitive examinations. “We have on board some of the top educators in the country, including Kiran Bedi, India’s first woman IPS officer and now the Governor of Pondicherry. With over 2 million views every month, we are touching the lives of people in the remotest corners of the country.”

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