Data breach toll plummets in first half

Cybernews reports that accounts worldwide impacted by data breaches dropped from 302 million during the first six months of 2024 to 15.8 million during the first six months of 2025, signifying a nearly 20-fold decline. The U.S. had the most breached accounts at 2.5 million, followed by France, India, Russia, and Brazil, according to findings from Cybernews' Personal data leak checker tool. The UK, Argentina, Taiwan, and Saudi Arabia rounded out the top 10. Most breaches occurred in January, while the U.S., France, India, Russia, and Venezuela were most targeted by such attacks during the first half of the year. However, data breach incidence plummeted by 77% between the first and second quarters of 2025, with all of the leading countries experiencing over 90% reduction in breaches. Data exposures have been associated by Cybernews researchers with unsafe online registrations, information-stealing malware, recycled weak credentials, and tech support scams. "If your passwords get leaked, the damage can go beyond just one account. Hackers can use that info to mess with your life in various ways. In the worst cases, they can even take over your digital identity," researchers added.