Spam email operator's faulty backup leaks 1.37bn addresses

'Chances are you, or at least someone you know, is affected,' says security expert Chris Vickery, after one of largest spam operations in world's database exposed

One of the largest spam operations in the world has exposed its entire operation to the public, leaking its database of 1.37bn email addresses thanks to a faulty backup.

As well as email addresses, the holy grail of the spam operation, personal information including real names, IP addresses and physical addresses have also been leaked, though on a smaller scale than the email information that makes up the bulk of the dataset.