336 Plaintext Passwords From web.de Dumped on Telegram

HEROIC analysts uncovered a stealer log file targeting web.de email users that was uploaded to Telegram in June 2026. The dataset contains 336 records, each including a web.de email address, a plaintext password, and the URL where the credential was intercepted. Web.de is one of Germany's largest free email providers, serving millions of users who rely on it for personal and professional communication.

The 336 plaintext credentials in this file represent a direct and immediate threat to German email users. With no encryption protecting these passwords, every record is ready for exploitation by any attacker who accesses the file.

Why Plaintext Passwords Offer Attackers a Free Pass

Passwords in this stealer log are stored in their original, readable form. There is no cryptographic protection whatsoever — no bcrypt hashing, no salting, no AES encryption. An attacker reads the password exactly as the victim typed it, and can use it against any service where that same password is employed.

The complete absence of any protective layer means these credentials were exploitable from the instant the file was shared. In contrast to breaches where attackers must invest time and computing power to crack password hashes, plaintext stealer logs offer a direct path from file download to account compromise with zero intermediate steps.

What Was Exposed in the web.de Dump

• Email Addresses — Web.de accounts belonging to German users, serving as login identifiers across numerous online services and providing a communication channel for phishing attacks.
• Plaintext Passwords — Unencrypted credentials captured from infected devices, fully readable and immediately usable against any account where the victim uses the same password.
• URLs — The websites and login pages where each credential was harvested, giving attackers confirmed targets for each stolen email and password pair.

Why 336 German Email Credentials Fuel Targeted Attacks

A collection of 336 web.de credentials gives attackers a focused dataset for targeting German-language services. Credential stuffing campaigns can be tailored to test these email and password pairs against popular German banks, telecommunications providers, government portals, and e-commerce platforms that web.de users are statistically most likely to use.

Password reuse among email users remains alarmingly common, with studies showing over 60% of people sharing credentials across accounts. Each of the 336 stolen web.de passwords likely works on multiple additional services, multiplying the effective reach of this breach well beyond the original record count.

How Stealer Logs Collect Credentials by Email Provider

Infostealer malware captures every credential a victim enters into their browser or retrieves from saved password storage. The raw output of a malware infection typically includes credentials for dozens of different services per device. Attackers then sort this data by email domain to create targeted collections like this web.de file.

This sorting makes the data more valuable because it enables focused attacks against specific user populations. A web.de-specific stealer log attracts threat actors who specialize in German targets or who have access to tools optimized for German-language platforms. The file was distributed through Telegram, where it reached a broad audience of potential attackers within hours of being uploaded.

Check If Your Credentials Were Exposed

If you use a web.de email account, HEROIC recommends scanning your credentials without delay. HEROIC's free breach scanner searches more than 400 billion compromised records to identify whether your email and password appear in this stealer log or any other breach in the database.

If your credentials are found, change your web.de password immediately and update every other service that shares the same login. Enable two-factor authentication on your email account and all critical services, and perform a thorough malware scan on all devices you use to access your web.de account.