Accounts Impacted: Approximately 29.8 million unique user accounts
Breach Occurrence Date: December 2025
Added to Breach Breakdown: January 2026
The Breach Breakdown
SoundCloud, the world’s largest open audio platform with over 300 million tracks, confirmed a significant security incident first detected in December 2025. Unlike a traditional hack that breaks into a main user database, this breach involved unauthorized access to an internal staff dashboard.
Once inside, attackers used that access to scrape and map private email addresses to public profile data at scale. In other words, they connected a user’s private contact information to their public persona for roughly 20% of SoundCloud’s entire user base. After a failed extortion attempt against the company, the attackers released the compiled dataset on public hacker forums in January 2026.
The breach has since been confirmed by independent cybersecurity researchers, who verified the dataset and its contents. As a result, nearly 30 million users now face a heightened risk of targeted scams and phishing attacks.
Information Exposed
Cybersecurity researchers confirm the leaked data includes:
- Email addresses (previously private)
- Full names and usernames
- Profile avatars
- Follower and following counts
- Geographic location data (in some cases)
Fortunately, SoundCloud has stated that passwords, payment information, and private messages were not accessed during this specific incident.
Why This Is Risky
Even without passwords being leaked, this breach is highly dangerous. Specifically, it gives criminals the missing link for social engineering, the ability to connect your private email to your public identity. As a result, they can use this data for:
- Hyper-targeted phishing attacks — attackers know your email and your SoundCloud profile, including who you follow and where you are. Therefore, they can craft convincing fake emails, such as a phony “collaboration offer,” “copyright strike,” or “account warning” that uses your real name and stats.
- Credential stuffing — hackers test leaked email addresses against common passwords on other sites. Furthermore, if you reuse passwords, your bank, streaming, or shopping accounts may also be at risk.
- Identity mapping — by linking a private email to a public username, criminals build a fuller picture of your digital life, making it easier to track and target you across multiple platforms.
Moreover, artists, podcasters, and creators face an added risk. Their public visibility makes their profiles more attractive targets for impersonation and scam attempts.
What You Should Do Now
If you have, or have ever had a SoundCloud account, even an inactive one, you may be at risk. Therefore, act now and take these steps:
- Change your passwords: Even though passwords were not leaked in this event, update your SoundCloud password and any other account where you have used the same one.
- Turn on two-factor authentication (2FA): Add an extra layer of security to your SoundCloud and email accounts so that a password alone is not enough to get in.
- Audit your inbox: Be skeptical of any emails claiming to be from SoundCloud, talent scouts, or collaborators that ask you to click a link or provide login details.
- Switch to a secure email model: Consider moving your primary inbox to a service like OptMsg to stop the cycle of breach-related spam and phishing for good.
How OptMsg Helps
Your email address was likely in the SoundCloud breach. That means attackers now know your identity, your public profile, and exactly how to reach you. However, OptMsg gives you the tools to fight back:
- You decide who can email you. OptMsg’s patent-pending opt-in router technology means only people you approve can reach your inbox — so even if criminals have your email address, they cannot flood you with targeted phishing attempts.
- No password to steal. OptMsg does not rely on a password to protect your account. Therefore, when breaches leak credentials from other sites, attackers have nothing to exploit.
- We don’t collect your personal data to sell to advertisers. Unlike “free” inboxes that profit from your information, OptMsg charges a small fee instead of treating you as the product.
- OptMsg does not scan your emails to sell ads. In short, your inbox belongs to you — not to advertisers or AI training systems.
Why It Matters
The SoundCloud breach did not just expose data. It exposed the vulnerability of our public identities. When nearly 30 million people have their private contact details linked to their public interests and creative profiles, it creates a goldmine for scammers.
Moreover, the real issue is the open nature of traditional email. As long as anyone with your address can land in your inbox, you remain at the mercy of every company’s security decisions. OptMsg flips that entirely, giving you full control over who can reach you.
Your Inbox. Your Rules.
Take control of your inbox today. Download OptMsg on iOS, Android, or use it on the web.
Helpful Links
- Fox News: SoundCloud Data Breach Exposes 29.8 Million User Accounts
- Centraleyes: SoundCloud Data Breach — Nearly 30 Million Accounts Confirmed Exposed
- OptMsg Security Solutions
Stay informed. Stay secure. OptMsg actively protects your email from data breaches and cyber threats. Our Breach Breakdown blog alerts you when companies expose personal information, so you can respond before criminals take advantage of it.
