If you have a LinkedIn account, now's a good time to change your password. Up to 6.5 million user accounts and encrypted passwords have reportedly been leaked and posted to a Russian hacker site.


LinkedIn hasn't confirmed the passwords have been stolen, but did confirm on its Twitter account they're looking into it. The leak comes off the news that LinkedIn's mobile apps transmit personal data, including meeting notes and calendar info in plain text. Regardless of whether the leak is confirmed or not, it's a good time to change your password. To do so, go straight to the LinkedIn Change Password page (you'll need to be logged in), enter a new, secure password, and click Change Password.

If you haven't already, now's a great time to set yourself up with a secure password management tool. Here's a quick primer for getting started with our favorite password manager, LastPass:

If you're new to LastPass, head over to our beginner's guide to LastPass

If you're already using LastPass, our intermediate guide


Using a tool like LastPass may seem like overkill, but remember: The only secure password is the one you can't remember. You're better safe than sorry.

Update: LinkedIn has confirmed that some of the compromised passwords are LinkedIn accounts. If your password was compromised your account password has already been made invalid and you'll receive an email with instructions for how to reset your password (you can also double-check here: LastPass - LinkedIn Password Checker). If you use the same password and email address for other websites as you did with LinkedIn make sure you change those as well.

Change passwords on LinkedIn Now | Dagens IT (Google Translate) via The Next Web