Doomworld doomworld.com Doomworld data breach: what happened and what to do
In October 2022, the Doomworld forum was breached, exposing 34,478 member records: email addresses, IP addresses, usernames and bcrypt password hashes. Have I Been Pwned added it on 24 October 2022.
View all 13,177 breaches- Breach date
- 12 Oct 2022
- Affected
- 34,478
- Data exposed
- Email addresses, IP addresses, Passwords, Usernames
- Verified
- Yes
- Last updated
Source: Have I Been Pwned (CC BY 4.0)
Reviewed by Anthon Wansland
Head of Product & Co-Founder
Serus is a privacy company with paid tools to find and remove your personal data. This page is free and based on official sources.
What happened
Doomworld is a long-running community forum for fans of the Doom games. In October 2022 it suffered a data breach, and Have I Been Pwned (HIBP) added the data to its database on 24 October 2022. HIBP counts 34,478 member records.
What was exposed
The data included email addresses, IP addresses, usernames and password hashes. HIBP says the hashes use bcrypt. That's a deliberately slow method designed to make cracking hard, so a strong, unique password is much safer here than in many breaches. A short or common one can still be guessed.
What that lets someone do
With your email address and username, a scammer can send phishing aimed at forum members. Your IP address gives only a rough location, but it's still personal data. If your Doomworld password was weak or reused, change it everywhere before anyone tries it on other sites.
Company response
HIBP links to a Doomworld announcement titled "Doomworld probably got hacked". The facts on this page come from HIBP's verified entry.
Was it you?
Search your email address on HIBP, or run a free Serus scan to check this and other breaches.
Sources checked: haveibeenpwned.com, consumer.ftc.gov
Last verified against the official page:
What to do if you were in it
- 1
Change your password if it was weak or reused
The passwords were stored as bcrypt hashes, which are slow to crack, but a short or common password can still be guessed. If you used it anywhere else, change it there too. Use a different password for every account, ideally from a password manager.
- 2
Turn on two-factor login
Two-factor authentication means a stolen password alone doesn't get anyone into your email, bank or shopping accounts. Start with your email, since it resets everything else.
- 3
Expect phishing that mentions the breach
Your email address was exposed, so scammers can write to you as if they know you. Don't click links in unexpected messages. Go to the site yourself instead.
- 4
Check whether your email or phone is in this and other breaches
Run a free Serus scan to see which breaches your email address or phone number appears in. Serus monitors breach databases and the dark web and alerts you when something new turns up. It can't remove data that has already leaked, so the steps above are still the fix.
Timeline
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The breach happened
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Added to Have I Been Pwned
Frequently asked
Was I affected by the Doomworld breach?
If you had a Doomworld forum account in October 2022, probably. Have I Been Pwned lists 34,478 records and lets you search your email address.
What was exposed in the Doomworld breach?
Email addresses, IP addresses, usernames and passwords stored as bcrypt hashes.
Should I change my password after the Doomworld breach?
Change it if it was short, common or used elsewhere. The FTC recommends changing reused passwords and turning on multi-factor authentication after a breach.
Sources
Something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we'll re-check it.
