Brinztech Alert: The Alleged Database of InfoHit is Leaked

Dark Web News Analysis

The dark web news reports a significant data breach involving InfoHit (info-hit.ru), a prominent online course aggregator and educational platform in Russia. A threat actor on a hacker forum monitored by SOCRadar has released a database containing approximately 1.5 million records.

The leaked dataset provides a detailed look at the platform’s user base. The compromised fields include First Names, Last Names, Phone Numbers, Email Addresses, and notably, Course Categories. This indicates that the leak captures not just who the users are, but what they are studying or purchasing.

Key Cybersecurity Insights

Breaches in the EdTech sector are highly valuable to scammers because they reveal a user’s specific interests and professional goals:

• Contextual Phishing: The exposure of Course Categories allows for highly effective “spear-phishing.” If a user bought a “Python Programming” course, attackers can send emails titled “Update regarding your Python certification” or “Download your course materials here,” which contain malware. The relevance of the topic lowers the victim’s suspicion.
• Lead Generation Abuse: With 1.5 million phone numbers and specific interests (e.g., “Finance,” “Marketing,” “Health”), this database is a goldmine for spam. Unscrupulous competitors or fraudulent “coaching” services can buy this list to bombard users with cold calls and SMS spam targeting their specific learning needs.
• Credential Stuffing: Users often reuse passwords across educational and entertainment platforms. While passwords weren’t explicitly listed in the sample, the email list alone allows attackers to test known passwords from other Russian breaches (like Yandex or Mail.ru leaks) to hijack InfoHit accounts.
• Regional Compliance: As a Russian entity, this breach triggers local data protection regulations under Roskomnadzor. The exposure of PII for 1.5 million citizens is a major compliance event.

Mitigation Strategies

To protect learners and platform integrity, the following strategies are recommended:

• Phishing Awareness: InfoHit must notify users immediately. The warning should be specific: “We will not contact you via WhatsApp or Telegram to sell you new courses.”
• Credential Reset: Enforce a mandatory password reset for all 1.5 million accounts to prevent account takeovers.
• SMS Vigilance: Advise users to be wary of SMS messages offering “refunds” or “bonus access” to courses they recently viewed, as this is a common tactic using leaked phone numbers.
• Bot Protection: Implement CAPTCHA and rate-limiting on login pages to stop automated bots from testing the leaked email addresses against the site.

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