Some Amazon customers were surprised by an email sent out by the company revealing that their information had been compromised.
Amazon confirmed Wednesday that there was an error that resulted in the compromised information, CNBC reported. It was unclear Wednesday though how many people had their Amazon information exposed and how long it was exposed for or in what specific way it was exposed.
The email sent to customers read, "We're contacting you to let you know that our website inadvertently disclosed your email address due to a technical error. The issue has been fixed. This is not the result of anything you have done, and there is no need for you to change your password or take any other action."
Did anyone else get this email from @amazon ? I swear, if I get one spam email from this accidental disclosure of my email address, I am forwarding it to @JeffBezos pic.twitter.com/d1WKZVlxSa
— Dwayne 🇦🇺 (@AbolitionOf) November 21, 2018
Many customers on Twitter were asking for more technical details about the email exposure as a whole. Some users wanted to know who the information was exposed to while others were wondering if their names were also shared.
“We disclosed your email address! To someone! Not gonna say who, or what impacts you might see as a result! Not even gonna apologize a little! Have fun worrying and being annoyed at us cause there’s literally nothing else you can do!!â€
— Alan Wehrman (@alan_wehrman) November 21, 2018
Gee, thanks Amazon pic.twitter.com/UNrWf4DeD0
Some people were unsure whether the email was legitimate and actually from Amazon or not. The link at the end of the email was not a secure link and the ambiguity of the email made some customers question it.
Only those who had their email addresses exposed were sent emails. This means customers who didn't get an email about the exposure did not have their emails exposed. The email said that users did not need to take any action or change their passwords. But for those feeling particularly vulnerable about the reveal could choose to change their passwords if they wanted.
Some people were also reaching out to Amazon's customer service team to ask whether or not the emails were real. The Amazon Help account on Twitter was sharing a link with users that had information about how to tell whether an email was actually from Amazon or not.
"Amazon will never send you an unsolicited e-mail that asks you to provide sensitive personal information like your social security number, tax ID, bank account number, credit card information, ID questions like your mother's maiden name or your password. If you receive a suspicious e-mail please report it immediately," said the site.
Additionally, customers should check and make sure the email came from an "@amazon.com" email account.
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