WebmasterWorld Compromised - Security Issue Reveals Some Passwords

Jun 3, 2008 - 9:16 am 1 — by
Filed Under SEO Forum News

Hasn't been a good weekend for forums. First we learn that DigitalPoint Forums had database issues and now I learn that the software used at WebmasterWorld was "compromised last week."

Brett Tabke posted the details of the issue. He said, there was a "security fault in the lostpassword utility was used to access admin passwords." Although this may sound serious, Brett said "the perpetrator did not actually do any harm that we can see."

How does this impact you? Well, you may want to change the password you have been using on WebmasterWorld to a different one. In addition, if you are a lurker (i.e. you don't post threads), your account may have been deleted during the pruning process.

Brett said he "scrubbed/weeded the entire membership base of inactive nonparticipating accounts going back three years (around 200k - almost 50% of the membership base)."

Please note that you cannot change your password just yet. The tech team is reworking that password utility feature as we speak. So stay tuned on the announcement page for any update.

 

Popular Categories

The Pulse of the search community

Google Search Volatility

More Details

Search Video Recaps

 
Video Details More Videos Subscribe to Videos

Most Recent Articles

Google Search Engine Optimization

Google Aggregator & Supplier Units Gain 'Things To Do' Query Support

Nov 9, 2026 - 6:03 am
ChatGPT

OpenAI Working On ChatGPT Tools For Business For Analytics & Citations

Nov 6, 2026 - 10:32 am
Search Forum Recap

Daily Search Forum Recap: November 6, 2026

Nov 6, 2026 - 10:00 am
Search Video Recaps

Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Scaled Content Abuse From Facebook, ChatGPT Search 20% Of Google & More SEO, PPC & Local

Nov 6, 2026 - 8:01 am
Google Maps

Google Business Profiles Manage Offers Help Document

Nov 6, 2026 - 7:51 am
Google

Google AI Mode Asking Searchers To Continue With This Search

Nov 6, 2026 - 7:42 am
Previous Story: Daily Search Forum Recap: June 2, 2008