Has My Password Leaked?
Checking, Plainly
Published October 2026 · Last verified October 2026
You can find out, in a few minutes and for free, whether your email address or passwords have turned up in a data leak. Better still, your phone and browser may already be checking for you. This guide shows you how to look, what the warnings mean, and the calm steps to take when one appears — because an alert isn't an emergency if you act.
You can find out, in a few minutes and for free, whether your email address or passwords have turned up in a data leak. Better still, your phone and browser may already be checking for you. This guide shows you how to look, what the warnings mean, and the calm steps to take when one appears — because an alert isn't an emergency if you act.
What's inside this guide
The printable PDF walks through 28 short chapters, in plain language. It also includes an everyday cheat sheet, a plain-English word list and at-a-glance pictures.
- You can actually check — and it's free
- What a data leak actually is
- Why a leaked password is worth fixing
- The one website to check: Have I Been Pwned
- Reading your Have I Been Pwned results
- Checking a specific password safely
- Your phone is probably already checking
- Checking on an iPhone or iPad (Apple)
- Checking with Google Password Manager
- Checking in your browser or password manager
- What 'compromised' means
- What 'reused' means
- What 'weak' means
- The calm four-step response
- An alert is not an emergency
- Fake leak warnings: the scammer's favorite
- Set up alerts so leaks come to you
- Checking every email address you own
- Two-factor: the lock behind the password
- After a leak: do you change everything?
- Helping a spouse or parent check
- Why unique passwords end the whole problem
- A simple yearly habit
- When a leak might be bigger than a password
- If you've never used a password manager
- Why old accounts are the quiet risk
- Trusting the right tools
- Putting it all together
Get the printable guide
Everything above is a quick summary. The full, printable guide — the same words, laid out to read and keep by the computer — is a free PDF.
Last verified October 2026. Information accurate as of October 25, 2026.
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