---
title: "Phone Numbers of 400M Facebook Users Were Publicly Available"
description: "Over 419 million database records on hundreds of millions of Facebook users, including their phone numbers, were stored in an unprotected server."
date: "2019-09-04"
modified: "2019-09-04"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/facebook-leak-400-million-phone-numbers"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "data leak"
  - "facebook"
  - "password protection"
  - "the digest"
---

# Phone Numbers of 400M Facebook Users Were Publicly Available

![Over 419 million database records on hundreds of millions of Facebook users, including their phone numbers, were stored in an unprotected server.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/facebook-leak-400-million-phone-numbers.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Facebook/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Sieve Vicious

Another day, another massive Facebook leak.

More than 419 million database records about hundreds of millions of Facebook users, including their personal phone numbers, were stored in an unprotected server, [according to *TechCrunch*](<https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/04/facebook-phone-numbers-exposed/>). That means anybody could've easily accessed the cache of personal data — a galling cybersecurity oversight.

## Pulled Down

The rogue server — it's not clear who ran it — was discovered by security researcher Sanyam Jain. Jain brought it to *TechCrunch*'s attention after he couldn't figure out who the server belonged to or why it wasn't protected.

The server was promptly pulled offline after *TechCrunch* contacted its webhost.

Each of the records contains a unique ID, plus a phone number. The Facebook username can easily be gleaned from that information, as *TechCrunch* verified in its own investigation.

## "Old " Data

If your phone number leaks online, it can invite spam and even open you up to two-factor authentication exploits.

The news comes after Facebook [got caught](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/facebook-upload-one-million-email-contacts>) "unintentionally" storing “hundreds of millions” of account passwords in plain text earlier this year.

“This dataset is old and appears to have information obtained before we made changes last year to remove people’s ability to find others using their phone numbers,” a Facebook spokesperson told *TechCrunch*. “The dataset has been taken down and we have seen no evidence that Facebook accounts were compromised.”

**READ MORE:** [A huge database of Facebook users’ phone numbers found online](<https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/04/facebook-phone-numbers-exposed/>) \[*TechCrunch*\]

**More on Facebook leaks:** *[Facebook “Unintentionally” Uploaded 1.5 Million Email Contacts](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/facebook-upload-one-million-email-contacts>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)