241,695 Hotmail Logins Just Surfaced in a Fresh Telegram Combolist

HEROIC analysts found a combolist named HOTMAIL NEW 0818 that a Telegram user uploaded, with a stated collection date of February 24, 2023. The file contains 241,695 records of Hotmail email addresses paired with plaintext passwords and the URLs each credential was collected from. Why This Is Dangerous: The word 'new' in this file's name signals that the login data was recently gathered or verified, meaning the passwords inside are more likely to still be active than data pulled from an old, stale breach. A large, relatively fresh batch like this gives attackers a higher success rate when they try these credentials elsewhere. What Was Exposed: - Hotmail email addresses - Plaintext passwords - Source URLs for each credential pair Why This Matters: Hotmail and Outlook accounts are frequently used to receive password reset links for banking, shopping, and social media, which makes a leak of this size especially risky. Attackers who successfully log into any of these 241,695 accounts can use them as a stepping stone to reset passwords elsewhere, leading to account takeover, identity theft, and financial fraud. How This Combolist Was Assembled: Files labeled 'new' like this one are typically compiled from recent stealer log outputs and freshly phished credentials, then filtered specifically for one email provider, in this case Hotmail, before being packaged and distributed on Telegram. Focusing on a single provider makes the list easier for attackers to target with provider-specific attack tools. Check If You Are Affected: HEROIC's free breach scanner checks your email against more than 400 billion leaked records, including combolists like HOTMAIL NEW 0818, so you can find out quickly if your account was exposed and secure it before someone else logs in first.