Question How to know about possible data breach?

[Meta321]

Hi there, recently my phone was stolen and I just got it back. It was locked, so I'm sure no one was able to unlock it. However, I'm not so much sure about the data breach. As anyone can just connect the android data cable and transfer the data to laptop/pc. They'll not require any lock or code that'll stop them from transferring data.

So if I'm right, then is there any way to detect? Or find out if someone connected data cable to transfer the data?

Thanks in advance!

 

[rvbfan]

Google one has a darkweb report if you activate it. I think you have to subscribe to the base service though. It'll at least tell you if your email and or passwords have been breached. Always good to change passwords occasionally anyway.

 

[rvbfan]

If you are really concerned about it, you can just go ahead and change all of your passwords and format.

 

[smvim]

Your phone's internal storage is encrypted so remotely accessing the data stored on it isn't just as simple as connecting a USB cable. Even for you to access your own data on your phone, that's integrated with the lock screen. The encryption key is stored within one of the system-level partitions in the internal storage. So the data is protected by the encryption, and when you use your lock screen that unlocks the key. Just offhand, it doesn't sound like your phone was compromised.

But just for your own peace of mind, follow rvbfan's advice, reset the passwords on your all your social media accounts. If you have a relatively long history online and you don't reset your passwords at least every few years it's a good practice to change them anyway.
You should use the 'Have I Been Pwned' website to check your email address(es):

Have I Been Pwned: Check if your email has been compromised in a data breach

Have I Been Pwned allows you to search across multiple data breaches to see if your email address or phone number has been compromised.

haveibeenpwned.com

It may seem like a big risk to voluntarily post your email address there, but the site has a solid reputation with a history going back several years. The site has a very extensive database of online breaches and vulnerabilities, and it will scan an email address for any matches. This is a useful service, not necessarily even related to what happened with your phone recently.
You should also take the proactive steps to freeze your credit. It's a good practice to protect your credit score.

Should You Freeze Your Credit?

A credit freeze can help protect against identity theft. Learn how to freeze and unfreeze your credit reports.

www.investopedia.com

Data brokers are now a profitable and nasty problem, you might also want to check for your online presence even further (this can be an involved, time-consuming project)

Here’s a Long List of Data Broker Sites and How to Opt-Out of Them

How to get off of people search sites like Pipl, Spokeo, and WhitePages.

www.vice.com

 

[Sizzers]

Excellent reply and explanation throughout.

Regarding Have I Been Pwned I've been using it for many years now. Found some breaches on a couple of Google accounts which were pretty irrelevant being from long dormant sites I used to visit.

Saw the light a long time ago and since used a password manager. Passkeys where available are now the way forward, especially on your Google account/s which is how mine are now all secured amongst others.