TheTVDB.com Breach Exposes 181,871 User Accounts and Password Hashes
What Happened — In November 2017 the open television database TheTVDB.com was compromised. Attackers posted roughly 182 k records containing usernames, email addresses and MySQL password hashes to a public hacking forum.
Why It Matters for Trust & Control Assurance —
- Weak credential protection violates the control objective of secure access management, a cornerstone of continuous control‑assurance programs.
- Inadequate password‑hashing and lack of ongoing authentication‑log monitoring hinder the ability to produce defensible audit evidence after an incident.
- The incident underscores the need for continuous verification of identity‑and‑access controls across third‑party APIs.
Who Is Affected — Media‑entertainment platforms that integrate TheTVDB API, developers with accounts on the service, and any end‑users whose credentials were stored.
Recommended Actions — Review and upgrade password‑storage algorithms (e.g., bcrypt, Argon2), enforce MFA for all accounts, implement continuous authentication‑log monitoring, and document these controls for audit readiness. Source: https://haveibeenpwned.com/api/v3/breach/TheTVDB
Technical Notes — The breach involved exposure of email addresses, usernames and MySQL password hashes; the exact attack vector was not disclosed. No CVE is associated. Source: https://haveibeenpwned.com/api/v3/breach/TheTVDB