Post by Category : Announcements

Freecycle Low-Risk Data Breach

A data breach on our site temporarily left members’ email addresses exposed. Fortunately passwords were not exposed, no other personal information was compromised and the breach has been closed (3/23) and reported to the U.K. Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

What this means for you: While most email providers do a good job at filtering out spam, you may notice an uptick. As always, please remain vigilant of phishing emails, avoid clicking on links in emails, and don’t download attachments unless you are expecting them. 

Here are some useful links to help keep you safe:

https://haveibeenpwned.com/ Find out what past data breaches have involved your personal information. 

https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams#report Learn how to recognize phishing emails

Finally, we want to emphasize that passwords were not exposed in this breach. While you don’t need to change your password at this time, it’s a good idea to regularly update your passwords.

I apologize for this breach personally. Please know that we have extensive firewalls and security measures in place to protect Freecycle.org and its members and that this low-risk breach was our first in nearly 20 years. Know that the breach has been fixed and the private data potentially accessible was limited solely to the email addresses themselves. 

-Deron Beal, Executive Director, The Freecycle Network

If you have further questions, you may visit this page: https://freecycle.helpscoutdocs.com/article/312-data-breach

Or, reach out to us at privacy@freecycle.org.

DON’T BE A VICTIM: NEVER PAY FOR DELIVERY OF A FREECYCLE ITEM

Don’t be a victim. Never pay for delivery of a Freecycle item.

The incidence of scams is on the increase, on Freecycle and elsewhere. Here’s how you can identify a likely scam:

  • The offering member claims to have recently moved or posted to the wrong Town group and they need money to send the item to you.
  • The post contains a photo of an email address.
  • The subject of the post uses unusual punctuation or odd symbols, such as ~.ṀusicaĮ Įnstruments~
  • The offer seems too good to be true, especially if the member has recently joined Freecycle or posted the item to multiple towns that aren’t near each other. 

Any time you find a suspicious post, or are asked to pay for an item or delivery of an item, please use the “Report” button on the post detail page, or send a message to your town moderators. Please don’t become a victim of another delivery scam!

Thanks for helping keep scammers out of Freecycle!

Penn Live: COLSTON MOORE OBITUARY

Sad news about a brilliant lady with a brilliant mind, a fellow Freecycle Moderator.

https://obits.pennlive.com/us/obituaries/pennlive/name/colston-moore-obituary?id=35452167

The Press, York: Community Pride Awards finalists announced

Person of the Year

Ben Weaver started the York branch of online recycling scheme Freecycle in 2005, a scheme which helps reduce the amount of usable items being sent to landfill. Ben has personally overseen almost 200,000 messages to help find homes for unwanted items.

Read more