Dark Web Intel: 2,641 SHA1-Hashed Credentials From the milq Breach

HEROIC analysts identified a database leak tied to milq (milq.com), a site listed in our records under the Shopping category. The breach is dated January 11, 2016, and exposed 2,641 records, including email addresses, usernames, and password hashes protected with SHA1.

Why a Small SHA1-Hashed Leak Still Carries Risk

SHA1 is an older hashing algorithm that's now considered weak for password storage, since modern hardware can crack many SHA1 hashes relatively quickly, especially for shorter or common passwords. Even at a modest scale of 2,641 accounts, that means a real portion of these passwords could be recovered and turned into working credentials.

What Was Exposed in the milq Database

• Email addresses
• Usernames
• Passwords (SHA1 hash format)

Why This Matters for Anyone in This Data Set

A small shopping-related site might not seem like a high priority, but the email and password combination tied to an account here is often identical to the one used for more important accounts elsewhere. Once a SHA1 hash is cracked, attackers plug the password into credential stuffing tools that automatically test it against other websites, looking for a match that leads to account takeover.

How a SHA1 Database Breach Happens

This incident is classified as a database breach, meaning the data was pulled directly from stored records rather than harvested one login at a time through malware. Sites relying on SHA1 for password storage are typically compromised through a vulnerability or misconfiguration that lets an attacker copy the entire user table at once. Because SHA1 is weaker than modern hashing methods, breaches like this one remain useful to attackers well after the fact.

Check If You Are Affected

If you've ever created an account on a smaller shopping or retail site and reused your password, it's worth checking your exposure. HEROIC's free breach scanner checks your email against more than 400 billion leaked records, so you can see where your data has surfaced and update any passwords still in use.