Identity Theft Risk Grows After HOTMAIL Leaks 562 Passwords

HEROIC analysts found a combolist labeled HOTMAIL after a Telegram user uploaded it on November 11, 2025. The file contains 562 records pairing email addresses with plaintext passwords, along with the URLs of the accounts each login was pulled from.

Why the HOTMAIL Combolist Puts You at Risk

Because the passwords in this file are stored in plaintext, anyone who downloads it can read the credentials immediately, with no cracking needed. Each record also lists the URL the login came from, so an attacker knows exactly which site to try the password on first before moving on to other accounts that might share the same password.

What Was Exposed in the HOTMAIL Leak

• Email addresses
• Plaintext passwords
• URLs of the accounts the credentials belong to

Why This Matters Even for a Small Leak

A list of 562 records may look small next to headline-grabbing breaches, but every one of those accounts is a real person whose password is now sitting in plaintext on the dark web. Attackers use lists like this for credential stuffing, testing each email and password pair against the matching site and other popular services. If the password was reused anywhere else, that account is at risk too, opening the door to account takeover, identity theft, and financial fraud.

How a Combolist Like This Gets Built

A combolist is a compiled file of email or username and password pairs, typically gathered from older breaches, stealer logs, or leaked databases and packaged into a single list. These lists are often shared for free in Telegram channels before spreading to dark web forums, where attackers run them against major websites to see which logins still work.

Check If You Are Affected

If you think an email or password of yours could be part of this leak, do not wait to find out. HEROIC's free breach scanner checks your information against a database of more than 400 billion leaked records, including combolists like this HOTMAIL dump, so you can see what has been exposed and change any reused passwords right away.