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On 4 May 2016, several major outlets reported that an estimated 273 million passwords and login credentials were stolen by one or more Russian hackers. One of the most prominent versions of the claim was published by Komando, the web site of tech radio show host Kim Komando, which reported that the password theft is one of the largest security breaches in recent history: As with other reports published by Reuters, The Independent, and Daily Mail, Komando peppered the article with descriptors such as allegedly, estimate, potentially, and a detail that the purported massive cache of data was offered for sale at just $1. Komando also offered few details about the breach, such as when or how such a large number of accounts came to be compromised. Reuters was equally vague in its report, noting that the claims primarily came from a self-identified hacker not seeking monetary compensation. Many media outlets spoke with Alex Holden, of Wisconsin-based Hold Security; Holden was referenced in the site's headline: Reuters included a response from Mail.ru, the entity whose user base was purportedly most affected by the attack. That information suggested that the claim had not yet been verified: The Guardian reiterated that there wasn't much available information: No information has yet emerged to confirm whether the claim was credible or how many (if any) accounts were compromised, and none of the reporting indicated whether any investigation had confirmed what details of the story, if any, were authentic. All versions of the claim that we found lacked any details as to when or how breaches of that size occurred. Finally, we were unable to locate any anecdotal reports of security issues related to the claim (such as social media users reporting that their accounts had been accessed or modified without their consent).
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