200 million social media records leaked in major X data breach

X, formerly known as Twitter, has been making headlines recently, with Elon Musk claiming that hackers have been trying to disrupt the platform. However, the most recent news involving the social media site is particularly alarming and puts its users at serious risk.

Earlier this month, reports emerged of a major data breach involving X, after a self-proclaimed data enthusiast known as “ThinkingOne” claimed to have released a database containing over 200 million user records on a popular hacker forum. The leaked data includes names, email addresses and nearly everything else associated with a user’s X profile.

The X data leak is believed to stem from a combination of breaches, including a massive one that allegedly occurred in January 2025 and another in 2023. The leaked dataset, reportedly a 34 GB CSV file, contains 201,186,753 entries with information such as X screen names, user IDs, full names, locations, email addresses (from the 2023 breach), follower counts, profile data, time zones and profile images.

ThinkingOne claimed that the data was cross-referenced from a larger breach involving 2.8 billion unique Twitter IDs and screen names. This breach may have been linked to an insider job during layoffs at X, although the company has not verified this claim. Cybersecurity researchers, including those from Safety Detectives, partially confirmed the authenticity of the data by matching a sample with public X profiles and verifying some email addresses. However, they were not able to fully confirm ownership.

The breach appears to trace back to a vulnerability identified in January 2022 through Twitter’s bug bounty program. This flaw allowed attackers to access user data using only an email address or phone number. Although the vulnerability was patched, the compromised data seems to have resurfaced in later leaks.

The data breach puts X users at risk as it significantly increases the risk of phishing and social engineering attacks. The leaked data could be used for impersonation or spear-phishing, putting users’ personal information at risk. X has not officially acknowledged this specific breach at the time of writing, although it previously downplayed the 2023 incident by claiming it involved mostly public data.

The total of 2.8 billion records far exceeds X’s estimated 335 to 600 million active users, suggesting that the dataset may include inactive accounts, bots or historical data. While the full scope and impact of the breach remain unclear, the incident highlights ongoing security challenges for the platform, especially following its acquisition by xAI in late March 2025.

In light of this breach, users are advised to take steps to protect themselves. Using strong antivirus software, removing personal data from the internet, changing passwords, making profiles more private, enabling two-factor authentication, using a VPN on public Wi-Fi, and signing up for identity theft protection are some of the recommended measures to safeguard against potential attacks.

The persistence of leaked data from the X breach highlights the importance of ongoing vigilance and proactive measures to protect personal information online. It serves as a stark reminder of the ever-present threat of cyber attacks and the need for users to stay informed and take precautions to mitigate risks.