Fashion Nexus data breach

From Breaches, in the HARD wiki · Updated
This article is about the July 2018 breach of Fashion Nexus. For every breach, see Breaches.

The Fashion Nexus data breach exposed 1,279,263 accounts from fashionnexus.co.uk in July 2018. The data taken includes passwords, purchases, dates of birth and names and 6 more kinds of data.[1]

Have I Been Pwned verified it and added it to its search on 31 Jul 2018, 1 month later. It is the 379th largest of the 618 breaches in HARD’s list.

What was exposed

Fashion Nexus’s breach included 10 kinds of data. What each lets criminals do:

DataWhat it’s used for
PasswordsCriminals try leaked passwords on email, banking and shopping sites, because people reuse them.
PurchasesShows what you buy, which makes fake order and refund scams convincing.
Dates of birthUsed to prove who you are to banks and phone companies.
NamesMakes scam messages personal enough to believe.
Physical addressesUsed to prove who you are, and for scam letters and parcels.
Email addressesExpect scam emails that name the company to look genuine.
Phone numbersExpect scam texts and calls, and a higher risk of someone moving your number to their SIM.
Browser user agent detailsPersonal details that make scam messages more convincing.
GendersPersonal details that make scam messages more convincing.
IP addressesRoughly where you were when you used the service.

What to do

  1. Check whether you’re in it.Search your email address on Have I Been Pwned. It tells you which breaches it appears in, Fashion Nexus among them, without showing the data.
  2. Change your Fashion Nexus password.If the account still exists, sign in at Fashion Nexus (fashionnexus.co.uk) and change it.
  3. Change it anywhere you used the same one.Start with your email, then banking and shopping. Leaked passwords are tried on other sites automatically, within days.
  4. Use a password manager and two-step sign-in.A different password for every site means one breach can’t open the rest. Two-step sign-in stops a leaked password working on its own.
  5. Distrust messages that mention Fashion Nexus.Scammers use breach data to sound genuine. Don’t click links in emails or texts about the breach; go to the site yourself.
  6. Put a PIN on your phone account.Ask your mobile provider for a port-out PIN, so no one can move your number to their SIM.
  7. Freeze your credit.In the US, free at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. In Australia, ask Equifax, Experian and illion for a ban. No one can open credit in your name while it’s on.

Timeline

  • : the breach, as best it can be dated.
  • : Have I Been Pwned verifies the data and adds it to its search, 1 month later.

Similar breaches

Breaches that leaked the same kinds of data, closest in time:

  • EatStreet, May 2019, 6.4 million accounts
  • bigbasket, October 2020, 25 million accounts
  • Dave, June 2020, 3 million accounts
  • Bonobos, August 2020, 2.8 million accounts
  • MMG Fusion, December 2020, 2.7 million accounts
  • Drizly, July 2020, 2.5 million accounts

See Breaches for all 618, and Updates for keeping your devices patched.

References

  1. ^ Troy Hunt. “Fashion Nexus”, Have I Been Pwned, added 31 Jul 2018. Breach data licensed CC BY 4.0.