‘HOTMAIL UHQ 1’ Combolist Leak Exposes Nearly 100,000 Logins

In April 2023, a Telegram user uploaded a combolist named HOTMAIL UHQ 1. HEROIC analysts confirmed the file contains 99,999 records, pairing email addresses with plaintext passwords and the URLs those credentials unlock, circulated under a name indicating the list is built primarily around Hotmail email accounts.

Why the "UHQ" Label Makes This List More Dangerous

Attackers use the term "UHQ," or ultra high quality, to signal that a combolist's credentials are more likely to still be active. With 99,999 email and password pairs bundled together, and every password stored in plaintext, this file gives an attacker a massive, ready-to-use set of Hotmail logins with no cracking required.

What Was Exposed

• Email addresses
• Plaintext passwords
• URLs linked to the accounts

Why a Leak This Size Matters for Everyone, Not Just Hotmail Users

A Hotmail inbox is often the recovery email for banking, shopping, and social media accounts, so a compromised Hotmail login can unlock far more than just email. Attackers use combolists like this one for credential stuffing, testing each pair against other services in hopes the same password was reused. With almost 100,000 credentials in this file, even a small percentage of successful logins could translate into widespread account takeover, identity theft, and financial fraud.

How a Combolist Like HOTMAIL UHQ 1 Gets Built

A UHQ combolist is assembled by pulling working email and password combinations from smaller breaches, phishing pages, and malware logs, then filtering out anything that no longer works before packaging the rest into one file. Lists labeled UHQ are considered more valuable on Telegram channels and dark web marketplaces because buyers expect a higher hit rate. Once shared, a file of this size can be redistributed to dozens of different attackers, each running their own credential stuffing attempts.

Check If Your Hotmail Account Is Affected

With close to 100,000 credentials in this combolist, there is a real chance your email address is among them, especially if you use or have ever used a Hotmail account. HEROIC's free breach scanner checks your email against more than 400 billion leaked records, including combolists like this one, so you can find out quickly and secure any account still at risk.