French Accounts Targeted in the 172k PVT French Record Dump

HEROIC analysts identified a combolist called 172k PVT French, uploaded by a Telegram user on 14 January 2023. Marketed as a private, French-linked batch, the file contains 172,293 email addresses paired with plaintext passwords and the URLs of the login pages they belong to.

Why This Is Dangerous

French-linked accounts were the specific target of this record dump, and being marketed as "PVT," or private, suggests the seller limited early access to a smaller circle of buyers before wider distribution. That combination of scale and targeting makes this batch especially attractive to anyone running credential stuffing campaigns against French-language services.

What Was Exposed

• Email addresses
• Plaintext passwords
• URLs of the login pages tied to each account

Why This Matters

With 172,293 records in plaintext, attackers hold a large, ready-to-use set of email and password pairs to test against banking, shopping, and social media logins. Anyone in this batch who reused their password elsewhere faces exposure across every account sharing it, a common trigger for widespread account takeover and identity theft.

How Combolists Work

A combolist compiles email and password pairs, typically pulled from stealer logs or older breaches, then organized by region or market, as with this French-focused batch. Sellers who label a list "private" usually restrict initial access to trusted buyers to protect its value before it eventually spreads more widely across Telegram channels and dark web forums.

Check If You Are Affected

HEROIC's free breach scanner checks your email against more than 400 billion leaked records, including large regional combolists like this one. Run a free search now and change any password that comes back exposed.