Employment statuses leaked: what it means and what to do
Risk level: low. Can you change it: no. Found in 2 breaches in this directory.
What this data is
A field showing whether you are employed, self-employed, unemployed, a student or retired, collected by lenders, insurers, job sites, government services and marketing surveys.
The risk on its own
Low risk on its own. A status cannot log in to anything or prove who you are. It changes over time and is often out of date by the time it leaks.
The risk combined with other data
With your contact details it works as a scam filter. People marked unemployed receive fake job offers and payday loan pitches, retirees receive pension and investment scams, and self-employed people receive fake tax and business registration demands. The status tells a scammer which story you are most likely to believe.
How criminals use it
A job seeker is offered a remote role that requires paying upfront for training or equipment.
A retired person is called about a pension review or an investment with a guaranteed return.
A self-employed person receives a fake tax office demand for an overdue business registration fee.
A fake employer asks for ID and bank details for payroll before any real interview has happened.
What to do now
Never pay to get a job, and never send ID or bank details before you have verified the employer and signed a contract.
Contact pension and superannuation funds only through the details on your official statements.
Check any tax demand by logging in to your official tax account yourself, such as the ATO through myGov, your HMRC online account or your IRS online account.
Change the password on the breached account, and be wary of offers that fit your situation a little too neatly.
Frequently asked questions
Is my employment status sensitive?
Not very. It is low risk, but it helps scammers pick the story most likely to work on you.
How do I spot a fake job offer?
Warning signs include being hired without an interview, paying for training or equipment, being asked to receive and forward money, and moving the conversation to a messaging app.
Can I get the field removed?
You can ask the company to correct or delete it, and leave it out of optional profile fields on job and social sites.
Breaches that exposed this data
Prosper: 2025-09-01, 18M accounts, Browser user agent details, Credit status information, Dates of birth, Email addresses, Employment statuses, Government issued IDs
Breach data sourced from Have I Been Pwned, used under CC BY 4.0. Additional breach metadata provided by XposedOrNot. DataExposed is an independent service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by either.